Leicester City in particular have been turgid ever since Ruud van Nistelrooy took over from Steve Cooper earlier in the season, whilst Kieran McKenna's Ipswich side at least attempted to play their opponents off the park.
In hindsight that might well have been the Portman Road side's downfall, but in taking games by the scruff of the neck Ipswich at least showed the fighting spirit that's been sorely lacking at the King Power Stadium this season.
The penultimate game of the season has personal and professional pride at stake of course, but the result is still important because of the difference in prize money for each club's finishing position in the Premier League.
There are merit payments that are distributed on a sliding scale from 1st to 20th, and this will take into account the various broadcast deals and how many times a club is televised etc., but just finishing one place higher up in the English top flight last season was worth £2.8m.
Jamie Vardy looking to sign off at Leicester with a bang
Goals win games of course, and the Foxes' Jamie Vardy will look to sign off his final home game for the club with a bang.
The striker will also reach a huge milestone in the match as it will be his 500th for Leicester City, a club he joined when they were in the Championship way back in 2012 from non-league outfit Fleetwood Town.
If he gets on the scoresheet against the Tractor Boys he'll also have netted his 200th goal for the club. Already Leicester's all-time top scorer with 199 goals, it's safe to say that during his time at the club, Vardy's highlights reel is extensive.
After helping to get the Foxes promoted not long after joining them, the striker set a new Premier League mark of scoring in 11 straight games during the 2015/16 campaign, breaking the record of his current coach Van Nistelrooy.
That season will live long in the memory, for it's when the 5000/1 shots ended up taking the title. The entire Leicester first-team set-up deserve the plaudits for their improbable title win of course, but it should be Vardy's name that should be written the largest given his impact across the season.
A result on April 10 2016, towards the end of the title-winning campaign, has often gone under the radar but it was significant for the club and for Vardy. His two goals at Sunderland not only saw him become the first Leicester man since Gary Lineker to bag at least 20 goals in the top flight, but it also guaranteed Champions League football for the club for the first time ever.
Group stage games against Porto, Club Brugge and Copenhagen, a last-16 clash with Sevilla and being knocked out by Atletico Madrid in the quarter-final will undoubtedly be an experience that no one involved could ever forget, with Vardy also bagging two goals in the sojourn across the continent.
Many of his strikes have been game winners of course but there surely weren't any better than a breathtaking 30-yard thunderbolt against Liverpool in that same 2015/16 season.
24 goals and six assists in the campaign remains his best output in a Leicester shirt, though he did come close in 2019/20 with 23 goals and five assists.
Effort and commitment as well as goals have endeared Vardy to the Leicester faithful
It hasn't only been goals that have endeared him to the faithful and his teammates, however, because even at 38 years of age he's still a player who will chase lost causes, who never gives up and who leads by example.
Learning his craft the hard way, coming up from the bottom to reach the very top, gave him a relatively unique experience but one which would've stood him in good stead for the later part of his Leicester career.
Under Brendan Rogers, Vardy helped his side to FA Cup glory after a 1-0 win over Chelsea in 2021 thanks to Youri Tielemans' second-half thunderbolt.
The last few seasons have been topsy-turvy to say the least with the Foxes relegated to the Championship in 2023 before bouncing straight back up as champions in 2024, only to be relegated again in 2025.
A relegation that clearly stung Vardy, who apologised to the fanbase in the wake of their fate being sealed.
"No words I have can ever express my feelings of anger and sadness with the way this season has gone. There are no excuses," he wrote on social media.
"Having been at this club for so long, we've experienced so many highs and successes - and this season has been nothing but miserable and for me personally, a total embarrassment. It hurts, and I know you're feeling it too.
"To the fans: I'm sorry. Sorry we haven't performed."
Harsh but fair words from a man who will soon leave the club with his head held high, his reputation intact and his legend assured, and yet another reason for supporters to love their star man.
