Fall from grace: What's happened to Leicester City?

Some are calling it a championship hangover. Others are saying it is a return to mediocrity. 

Throughout the 2015-16 season, the Leicester City Foxes seemed almost unbeatable en route to its improbable first-ever Premier League title. 

They captured the minds and hearts of football fans across the globe, becoming one of the best underdog stories in the history of professional sports.

Leicester's run to unimaginable glory was a first in the franchise's 132-year history.

However, the magic the Foxes produced last season appears to have run out.  

Just a few months into the current season, the Foxes are nowhere close to top of the Premier League standings — in fact, they are just four points out of the relegation zone. 

What has happened to last year's Cinderella story that started the season with 5,000-1 odds to win the title? 

'Everything is wrong' 

This season, Leicester has managed just four wins in 16 Premier League games (4 wins, 4 draws, 8 losses), a drastic change after losing just three times in 38 matches last year (23 wins, 12 draws, three losses).

"It's difficult," manager Claudio Ranieri told the Sunderland Echo earlier in December. "Everything last season was right, starting with luck; this season, everything is wrong."

Although Ranieri paints a dark picture, it hasn't all been bad news for Leicester. 

With their astonishing championship run last season, the Foxes were entered into their first-ever Champions League draw. Although their poor performance in Premier League play has been surprising, Leicester has stacked up well against Europe's best, winning its group with a 4-1-1 record (13 points) in the Champions League Group Stage. Leicester is set to play Sevilla in the Round of 16 in February. 

Although his club topped Group G, Ranieri admitted Leicester's poor performance in the Premier League has left a sense of uneasiness amongst its supporters. 

Road woes

The Foxes haven't been terrible at home but their play on the road has been costly. Leicester has managed just a single point in eight away matches to start the season (one draw, seven losses)

Leicester's defence has been shaky as it has allowed 19 away goals this season, one more than all of last year's road games. Leicester City has dropped its last 10 Premier League away matches, a first since 2002. 

When asked about his squad's road woes, Ranieri was at a loss. 

"In Champions League, we played so well. In Premier League, no," he told ESPN FC at a press conference on Tuesday. "Why? I don't know." 

Offensive struggles

The Foxes also haven't been the same on the offensive side of the pitch, managing 21 goals in 16 matches this season, 13 fewer than at this point last season. 

One of the main reasons is the lacklustre play of Jamie Vardy. Last year, the 29-year-old finished second in Premier League scoring with 24 goals, just one shy of league leader Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur. 

In 16 contests this season, Vardy has only managed five goals, a far cry from the league leader's 12. (Chelsea's Diego Costa).

Forward Riyad Mahrez, 25, is another disappointment. After finishing fifth in Premier League goals last year (17), the Algerian has found the back of the net just three times in 16 matches this year. 

Combined with the loss of consistently energized midfielder N'Golo Kanté to Chelsea in the off-season, the Foxes simply don't pose the same threat. 

While an impressive 4-2 victory over fourth-ranked Man City on Saturday raised hopes of a return to form, they were quickly dashed with a disappointing 1-0 loss to a mediocre Bournemouth squad on Tuesday. 

Sure, the 38-match Premier League season is far from over, but Leicester is headed in the wrong direction.