Shakespeare: Hard Work, Commitment And Endeavour

- Leicester City secured their first away win of the Premier League season with a 3-2 triumph over West Ham United at London Stadium 

- Riyad Mahrez, Robert Huth and Jamie Vardy all found the net for City, while Kasper Schmeichel made a string of fine saves to deny the Hammers a point 

- Manager Craig Shakespeare praised the work ethic within the team, who have now won four straight games 

- Wes Morgan missed the match through injury but Shakespeare is hopeful of a return for the captain after the international break 

Leicester City manager Craig Shakespeare insisted the team’s recent success is all down to hard work after a 3-2 victory over West Ham earned them a first Premier League away win of the season. 

Goals from Riyad Mahrez and Robert Huth saw the Foxes race into a 2-0 lead but Manuel Lanzini’s free kick gave the Hammers hope. Jamie Vardy restored the two-goal lead with an instinctive finish, but after Andre Ayew’s headed goal in the second half made it 3-2, the Foxes had Kasper Schmeichel to thank for the three points following a string of fine saves. 

The victory was City’s fourth on the spin under Shakespeare and third in the league, meaning they move six points clear of the relegation zone heading into this month’s international break. 

West Ham pressed hard in the second half but the Foxes were resolute, and Shakespeare was full of praise for them at the full-time whistle. 

“There is no secret,” he said. “I think hard work, commitment and endeavour, we showed all of them today, along with some good footballers. We scored the goals at the right time today. It gave us a foothold in the game. There is no secret. The hard work is paramount to success and we have to keep doing that. 

“I think it is one where we set our stall out in terms of pressing teams high but I think the goals were paramount in giving us foothold in the game. 

“We spoke about the importance of starting brightly and playing on the front foot if we could, similar to the other night. We had to show real resilience in the second half because give West Ham credit, they really pinned us back. 

“We had to not only defend our box well in terms of crosses but we also had to handle the physicality of Andy Carroll. We had the goalkeeper to thank for making some pivotal, crucial saves that helped us win the game. 

“I would love to play silky football but this is the Premier League we are talking about. It is hard to get back to back wins. We managed to do that now and you have to show all the attributes. You have to show resilience and I thought we did that in abundance today.” 

The Foxes were without skipper Wes Morgan for the match, with Yohan Benalouane replacing him in the starting XI and performing well in his absence alongside Robert Huth. 

Shakespeare revealed: “He had a slight back injury against Seville. We thought we had given him enough time to get over it and he was touch and go, but in the end he didn't quite make it. I think the international break will come at a great time for Wes. We can get him some treatment and hopefully he will be fit and raring to go for the next game.”