Just months ago, Leicester City’s relegation to the Championship was confirmed, exactly a decade after the ‘great escape’. The Foxes, under Ruud Van Nistelrooy, went through a 20-game period, with 18 losses, which was a part of record-breaking numbers. As the Leicester players have been criticised throughout the past season, you can’t help but think about the players who showed the fight to stay up. That said, one wonders what happened to the 2014/15 Leicester City players who helped the remarkable dream happen.
2014/15 Great Escape Team: Where Are They Now?
The Context
Similarly to their most recent campaign, the East Midlands outfit came into the Premier League after a stellar season. In 2014, they won the league by a stunning 102 points, which was the joint-third best points total ever. Under Nigel Pearson, the club looked rejuvenated, especially following the stint in League One just years prior.
Despite the gruelling nature of the league, the Foxes found themselves superior to their challengers as they won the title with a nine-point lead. The performances this season could be seen as a precursor to what would come in the top division as the likes of Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez and Kasper Schmeichel all featured.
Leicester City Goalkeeper and Defensive Line
Kasper Schmeichel
The son of Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel, and eventual Premier League winner, made his mark during this season. Despite playing just 24 games that season, he conceded 37 with six clean sheets along the way. The Dane would go on to remain the Leicester number one until 2022, when he left for Nice.
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Schmeichel is still playing to this day as Denmark and Celtic’s first-choice goalkeeper. The most recent season saw him keep 19 clean sheets for the Scottish side, who won the league with ease.
Paul Konchesky
A Charlton Athletic youth graduate, Konchesky had a long-standing career within the English game. Before arriving at the King Power Stadium, he spent time at Liverpool, Fulham and West Ham United. His time with the Foxes began in 2011 and ended in 2016 following a loan spell with QPR.
Since then, the twice-capped England international, joined clubs throughout the country, before starting his coaching career.
Wes Morgan
The Jamaican played a key part in this campaign as he registered more minutes than any other player. This was his third season in royal blue, since leaving local rivals Nottingham Forest back in 2012. His success with the club continued as he remained captain throughout the Premier League title-winning season, European tour, and F.A. Cup win. After the delight at Wembley against Chelsea, Morgan had played his final game for the club as he retired at the end of the season.
After completing his career, the respected centre-back has gone on to many unique endeavours. He has often worked as a pundit, whilst also helping with the Nottingham Forest academy and earning a Masters in Sports Directorship.
Marcin Wasilewski
The Polish international began his career playing for multiple clubs in his homeland, including Lech Poznań. His next move brought him to Belgium, where he played over 140 times for Anderlecht. Performances for the side led to a move to England in 2013. Despite playing over 60 times for the Foxes, his most prominent role came during the first two campaigns, as he appeared 28 times in 2014/15.
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After this, the now 45-year-old returned to Poland to complete three seasons for Wisla Kraków. Since retiring, he has been linked with a career switch to Mixed Martial Arts, whilst also becoming a pundit for Polish TV.
Robert Huth
Premier League veteran and powerful centre-back, Huth, joined the Foxes in the winter of 2015. This was the last move of his long-standing career, which saw stints with Chelsea, Stoke and Middlesbrough. The three-time Premier League winner played a prominent role in his three seasons in Leicester, with his first season being crucial to survival.
His time with the club eventually ended in 2018 after ankle and foot injuries left him sidelined for the entire season. In his life post-football, Huth, like his centre-back partner, studied sporting directorship before returning to Leicester as loans manager.
Ritchie De Laet
After spending time at various clubs across Belgium, the full-back made his move to England through Stoke City. Despite being a Premier League player for both Stoke and Manchester United, many loans to the likes of Wrexham, Norwich City and Sheffield United came in this period.
However, his time at Leicester changed this as he had an increased role during the Championship success. This season in particular, he played on 26 occasions and managed to keep Danny Simpson out of the side. Since then, he has played for other clubs such as Royal Antwerp and Aston Villa, before hanging up his boots in 2024.
Leicester City Midfielders
Esteban Cambiasso
One of the most remarkable transfers from this summer was the Inter Milan treble winner arriving at the King Power Stadium. Cambiasso joined at the latter stages of his career after being a cornerstone of the ‘Nerazzurri’ midfield for eight years. Whilst in England, the Argentine didn’t disappoint. He scored a crucial goal in the 5-3 win versus Manchester United and assisted Vardy’s late winner against West Brom.
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Following on from his time in the East Midlands, the midfielder completed two seasons for Olympiacos. After a tremendous playing career, he went on to be an assistant manager for Colombia at the World Cup in 2018 and a pundit for Sky Sports Italia.
Matty James
A product of the prestigious Manchester United academy, the Welshman was another key midfielder for the Foxes in the ‘Great Escape’. A lack of gametime in Manchester originally led to his move to Pearson’s side in 2012, alongside the aforementioned De Laet.
In the 2014/15 Premiership campaign, James appeared 27 times and racked up almost 1900 minutes. Despite this, his time within the starting eleven would soon change. A devastating injury saw James sidelined through the title-winning season, and need a loan spell with Barnsley by 2017. He would then go on loan again to Barnsley and then rivals Coventry City, before departing for Bristol City in 2021. In the present day, James still plays, having helped Wrexham to Championship promotion.
Danny Drinkwater
Yet another product of the Manchester United youth system was Drinkwater, who also never played a game for the Red Devils. After multiple loan spells, the midfielder eventually found himself settled in Leicester. He arrived in January 2012 and played over 100 games for the club in their three Championship campaigns.
However, this season in particular saw him register just 23 appearances and under 1500 minutes. Despite this, Drinkwater would go on to play a major role in the title win the following season and even earn multiple caps for England. Great performances led to a move to Chelsea in 2017, which was remarkably unsuccessful. His lack of games for Chelsea coincided with underwhelming loan spells before he was released in 2022. Since hanging up his boots, Drinkwater has decided to work in the construction industry, not for financial reasons but out of choice.
Andy King
One of the many Leicester City legends, King was an academy graduate who broke into the first team during the lows of 2008 in League One. He would solidify his position in the starting eleven in the years that followed as he helped the club to Championship success. Once in the Premier League, King’s influence wouldn’t stop. He played 24 times in this campaign and scored crucial late goals at Swansea and West Ham. King just a year later became the first player to win League One, the Championship and the Premier League with the same club.
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He then eventually left the Foxes and spent time at OH Leuven before moving to Bristol City. Just last year, King formally announced his retirement and has since become a first-team coach under Ruud Van Nistelrooy.
Leicester City Attackers
Riyad Mahrez
Perhaps the most successful player from this squad, Mahrez has gone on to become one of the best Premier League players of the decade. The tricky winger joined the Foxes from Le Havre in the winter of 2014, as he was brought in to help Pearson’s side to promotion. In his first season in the top flight, he managed just four goals and three assists. A goal away at Hull and a brace versus Southampton were standout performances from the Algerian.
In the years that followed, Mahrez became better and better every year. His spectacular performances led to him picking up the PFA Player of the Year award the following season and a move to Manchester City. His five-year stint under Pep Guardiola saw even more success as they won four Premier League titles and a treble in 2023. Despite still being at the top of his game, the winger moved to Saudi Arabia that summer and has remained there ever since.
Jeffrey Schlupp
Meanwhile, on the left-hand side of Pearson’s 4-4-2, academy graduate Schlupp featured regularly. He played the second-most amount of minutes with over 2,500 minutes, due to his versatility. His goal away at Liverpool proved to be enough to earn his side a hard-fought point at Anfield, which was another pivotal moment delivered by the Ghanaian international.
The now 32-year-old went on to spend another two years in Leicester before moving to South London in the winter of 2017. His stint with Crystal Palace once again showed his quality and was rewarded with an F.A Cup medal in 2025. During this campaign, Schlupp also spent half the season on loan with Celtic, where he helped win the league and compete in a gruelling Champions League fixture with Bayern Munich.
David Nugent
Championship veteran David Nugent was another influential player in the ‘Great Escape’. He made his move to the King Power Stadium in 2011, after success with Portsmouth, Preston North End and Burnley. His pedigree with the clubs in and around the top division even led to his one and only international cap, where he scored.
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His tenure with Leicester saw an even better return as he found the net over 15 times in the three different Championship seasons. Despite this, in the Premier League, he struggled and only managed a return of five goals. Once leaving, Nugent went on to play for both Derby and Middlesbrough, which helped cement him as a Championship legend, as at the time, he had the most goals in the league since its inception. Since retiring, he still has links with the club, having appeared at the legends games versus local side Anstey Nomads and appearing on Foxes Hub.
Leonardo Ulloa
The biggest arrival in terms of spending was Leonardo Ulloa’s move from Brighton. The striker’s 16 goals for the promotion-chasing side were enticing enough for Leicester to spend around £8m, which was a club record at the time. Ulloa managed to deliver some big goals in his first season. Of his 11 goal return, braces against both Manchester United and Newcastle stand out, alongside a winner away at Stoke.
After a strong first campaign, Ulloa never really got back to the same heights. This was despite some crucial goals in the following season, as he scored a last-minute Earthquake goal to seal a win versus Norwich City. After his time in England, he went on to play in Mexico and Spain for both Pachuca and Rayo Vallecano.
Jamie Vardy
The longest-standing member of the ‘great escape’ squad, Vardy only left Leicester this season. Vardy joined City from non-league Fleetwood Town in the summer of 2012. During this season, he found the net on five occasions with eight assists. Notable moments from his first season in the top flight include two assists and a goal against Manchester United, or a late winner at the Hawthorns.
Following this season, Vardy went on to take the league by storm. He led the club to a Premier League title in 2016 as he scored 24 goals. This form wouldn’t stop as he went on to score over 15 goals a season for the club until 2023. However, this all came to an end this past season, when he scored his 200th goal in his final game for the club against Ipswich.
