The Brave Little Club That Couldn't has almost done it

Leicester City are on the brink of greatness. Mathematically, they are just four wins away from sealing a totally unprecedented first ever league title, having been rated 5000/1 title longshots and among the favourites for relegation at the season’s start. Seven points clear of Tottenham with six games remaining, 12 more points will give them an unassailable lead, but history suggests they might in fact be closer to the title than that. In the Premier League era, the league leader at this stage of the season has gone on to lift the trophy in 16 out of 23 seasons. Of the seven times they have been overtaken during the run-in, three have been when the second-placed team have had a game in hand, while on another occasion only goal difference had separated the top two. On two of the remaining three occasions that a points difference has been thrown away, that lead was just one point – in 1992/93 when Aston Villa capitulated in a way that even the most cynical fan would not predict of Leicester this year, as well as in 2009/10 when Chelsea caught and toppled Manchester United. This may be Leicester City's year, but hopefully Loser van Gaal gets it together over at Man United and delivers a capable team of the kind that made Sir Alex Ferguson and Matt Busby great.