Of all the sights around Leicester before this game – other than the man in a Chelsea shirt selling Foxes title-winning scarves – one caught the eye. A local gospel choir serenaded the crowd outside the ground and, while they unwittingly partook in a rendition of “When the Saints go Marching in”, another ditty had the supporters clapping hardest.
“We love you Vardy, we love you Mahrez, we love you Kanté”, sang the choir. “We love what you are doing this season.” They hailed a triumvirate that has been integral to Leicester’s year of years, yet perhaps one of City’s unsung heroes will join the feted list before the next refrain.
Wes Morgan was the match-winner here for the first time under Claudio Ranieri, scoring his first goal since May 2015. In reality, he has won many other matches with his performances at centre-half but, on this occasion, his name will be the one up in lights.
He almost did not play because of illness but Morgan’s header from Christian Fuchs’s cross in the closing minutes of the first half set Leicester on their way to a fourth successive 1-0 victory.
This calendar year they have kept nine clean sheets in the Premier League and a defence transformed from earlier in the campaign has had Morgan at its heart.
“Wes is fantastic,” said Ranieri after a win that almost assures Leicester of a Champions League qualification place. “He didn’t have a holiday this season, he had the national team in July and he came back here, so I gave him some days off, and some days off during the season because he needed them.
“But he came back on Friday, he had a cold, was tired, but he is a strong man. A good example for everybody, he’s a good example for everybody. When he speaks, everyone listens to him.”
Seven points clear at the top of the table with six games left to play. The closer it gets, the more real it gets and, while Leicester were not at their best on an afternoon when Southampton could have punctured the ballooning optimism and belief emanating from this club, Ranieri’s side again found a way to win.
Danny Simpson was in the thick of it – denying Sadio Mané with his elbow after the Senegalese forward had rounded Kasper Schmeichel and later missing a clear chance from Southampton’s six-yard box – while Fuchs impressed again. However, it was Morgan, alongside Robert Huth, who proved impassable for the fourth time in succession.
It has been some journey for the 32-year-old. “You’ll never beat Wes Morgan” was once a song born from fondness, rather than sincerity. Coined by Nottingham Forest fans, where he played for 10 years until 2012, it was a chant that emerged because of the player’s commitment, spirit and downright dedication, yet now one that can be sung with validity.
In the air, he had the beating of Graziano Pellè, Southampton’s Italian centre-forward. On the ground the Italian cut the Leicester defence open once, but other than Mané’s golden opportunity Southampton only really tested Schmeichel from long range. José Fonte’s drive in the 35th minute needed an extended reach from the goalkeeper and, soon after, Jordy Clasie went narrowly over.
Morgan said: “I’ve been getting a lot of stick because I haven’t scored all season so to keep the boys quiet and to shush them up was fantastic. It’s better late than never to score a goal and an important goal it proved to be.
“Obviously we saw the [Tottenham] game yesterday and that it was a draw. It was a massive, massive game for us, we really wanted it today and to get a goal was fantastic. I was quite ill yesterday so I wasn’t sure if I was going to be well enough to play, but I felt a lot better and obviously I want to play. I had to get through it today but obviously it’s important that we all dig in.”
Morgan made 335 league starts for Forest in the second and third tiers, having been rejected by Notts County as a 15-year-old. He is still remembered well by Forest’s fans, however envious they may be of Leicester’s unlikely ascent this season, and if City get over the title line in the coming weeks his status will surely rise to reverential in the blue territory of the East Midlands.
Even the Lord Mayor of Leicester was present with the gospel choir pre-match. Councillor Ted Cassidy said: “It has been absolutely amazing for the city. Everyone goes to work with a spring in their step and the increase in Leicester’s profile internationally has been worth millions.”
Morgan, a man who was bought for just £1m, has more than earned a place in their song.
