Leicester City boss Marti Cifuentes refused to lavish praise on Oxford United after Saturday’s fiery 2-2 draw, insisting his 10-man side were the more dangerous outfit and could easily have left the Kassam Stadium with all three points.
Cifuentes’ men were forced to play over 70 minutes a player short after Aaron Ramsey’s reckless high tackle earned a first-half red card.
Oxford capitalised before the break with Ben Davies’ deflected effort adding to Will Lankshear’s opener, but Ricardo Pereira’s second-half strike salvaged a deserved point for the visitors.
Yet Cifuentes was quick to stress that Oxford’s threat was largely superficial.
“In my eyes, it’s true that Oxford created some long-range shots, but in terms of threat and danger in the box, I felt we were the ones who were closer in the second half,” he said.
It was a fair assessment. Leicester’s response after the interval transformed the contest. Cifuentes adjusted to a 4-3-2 shape, pushing Ricardo into midfield and introducing Harry Winks to bring poise and control.
The result was a dominant spell where City dictated possession, strung together incisive combinations, and carved out the game’s best opportunities despite the numerical disadvantage.
Ricardo’s superb equaliser was the obvious highlight, but there were other moments when Leicester’s movement and composure unsettled the hosts.
Jordan Ayew remained a constant menace, narrowly missing a late curler, while Winks’ calm distribution and positional awareness—90 percent pass accuracy and total command in midfield—ensured Oxford were kept on the back foot.
Cifuentes praised his side’s “personality, bravery and courage” to keep pressing rather than retreat into a low block.
“I will never be satisfied with only one point because that’s not my nature,” he added.
“I want my team to win football games. But it was a difficult scenario after 20-ish minutes, so I’m very pleased after a poor first half with the reaction we showed.”
While Oxford enjoyed their numerical edge, their cutting edge was lacking. Beyond speculative efforts from distance and the fortunate own goal that doubled their lead, they rarely troubled Jakub Stolarczyk. Leicester, even a man down, looked likelier to snatch a winner as the second half wore on.
For Cifuentes, that was the telling story. His tactical reshuffle neutralised Oxford’s advantage and reasserted Leicester’s quality. Had Ramsey stayed on the pitch, the Spaniard clearly believes the unbeaten run would have been extended with a victory, not just a point.