Albrighton Reveals Preparation Secrets

- Marc Albrighton says Leicester City’s new Players’ Lounge is helping to nurture a stronger team spirit 

- City’s stars meet in the room at 11.30am on a home matchday 

- Albrighton feels the new routine helps the team to relax and bond ahead of Barclays Premier League fixtures 

- The room has pool tables, dart boards, PlayStations and even beds 

- Albrighton was speaking during the latest instalment of The Friday Interview on Foxes Player HD 

Take a walk through King Power Stadium on a matchday and you just might stumble across a shiny new Players’ Lounge – a room that Marc Albrighton feels is helping bring the team closer together. 

Kitted out with massage chairs, pool tables, PlayStations and even beds, the new matchday meeting place gives Leicester City’s stars the freedom to prepare in different ways for matches as well as nurturing a stronger team bond. 

Speaking exclusively to Foxes Player HD as part of the latest edition of , Albrighton gave a first hand insight into City’s pre-match preparations and why he feels they’re helping the team to succeed on the pitch. 

<div ><br /><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“Basically we meet in here on the morning of a game at half 11 and we go straight through for food and have a big pre-match meal,” said Albrighton, sitting on one of the sofas in the new Players’ Lounge. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“There will be everything there from cereals to chicken to eggs or whatever you prefer. Then as soon as you’ve eaten that you come into this room and you’ve got everything that you need to relax and prepare the way that you want to prepare for the game. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“We’ve got the big comfy massage chairs, we’ve got sofas, TVs, darts boards, PlayStations - everything that you could want to get into the right frame of mind for the game and it caters for everyone. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“It’s a big change. Last season it was pretty much a case of turning up at half one, the team got named and out you went for your warm up. So I think this brings you together more. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“I know there was a group of us last year that went to the training ground for pre-match but I think this is the better way to do things. You’re together as a group from early in the morning and you’re chatting about the game. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“Basically I just think it’s better to be together on the day of a game. It suits me and I presume it suits a lot of the lads because it’s working well.” </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">To watch the full 25-minute interview on Foxes Player HD <a href="http://www.player.lcfc.com/latest-news/1cb00e64-a002-4c11-b753-59d0297eff3c" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><img xlink:href="tcm:0-2609613" title="Marc_Albrighton_16_9_LC7461-319" alt="Marc_Albrighton_16_9_LC7461-319" style="width: 480px; height: 270px;" /><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">Results on the pitch would seem to back that up too. The Foxes currently sit third in the Barclays Premier League table just one point adrift of the league leaders Manchester City, while they’ve also won their previous three matches. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">On top of that there’s an irrepressible team spirit that’s clearly been evident under Claudio Ranieri, something underlined by City’s remarkable record of coming from behind to secure points on six occasions this season. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">Each player being able to prepare in his own way for the match could well have a positive bearing on that, and as Albrighton points out, there’s plenty of variation in how City’s stars like to get ready for their games. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">He revealed: “Everyone is different. Some people just like a simple bowl of cereal. I think Riyad [Mahrez] has cereal whereas I’ll pile my plate up a little bit. I’ll go for chicken, pasta broccoli and eggs. I go for the lot because I feel like I need a big meal. It does cater for everyone like I said. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“There’s a card school. You’ve got Vards (Jamie Vardy), Was (Marcin Wasilewski), Ritchie De Laet and Andrej [Kramaric] – they all like a game of cards. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">“Then there’s Jeff [Schlupp] on the pool table. Kingy (Andy King) will be up there and Kasper [Schmeichel] will probably be watching the game. There will be a group of us – me Leo [Ulloa], Nathan Dyer and Drinky (Danny Drinkwater) – watching our TV series on our laptops. </div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">“We’ve also got the beds through there and I think before a game Riyad enjoys getting his head down. He certainly enjoys his time in there and that’s pretty much it.”</span></span></div><div><a href="http://www.player.lcfc.com" target="_blank"><img xlink:href="tcm:0-2692753" title="PlayerHD2015_Banner" alt="PlayerHD2015_Banner" style="width: 480px; height: 100px;" /></a><br /></div></div>