European Qualification Terrific For Beaglehole

The young Foxes beat Benfica 2-0 at King Power Stadium on Monday, with a strike from Tom Hopper adding to an early own goal from Victor Lindelof.
The result comes after the Under-21s beat Schalke in the same competition last week, meaning that they have qualified from Group B with two wins from two games, with a clash with Manchester City still to come.
“I thought again it was a terrific game for our players to learn from,” said Beaglehole. “Benfica are totally different opposition to what we’re used to playing against.
“We expected a lot of rotation so the lads had to be really focused and disciplined to keep a clean sheet tonight, and although we had a lot of pressure on us, we’ve done what we did against Schalke.
“One or two lads ran out of steam – I think they’ve got a bit of a cold like I have at the moment, so the energy levels were down with one or two key players.
“Joe Dodoo coming off in the early stages was a big loss for us because he’s been excellent in our last two or three games.
“And of course, Matt Upson was a calming influence with his experience – it was always a case of him coming through that first game.
“I’m proud of the performance. Ben Chilwell coming on at half-time – another one of the Academy lads – was very mature in his performance against a good set of players.
“It’s the first time we’ve been in Europe. We’ve worked hard to get into this position. Last year we finished in the top six which allowed us to be in this competition.
“The experience has been terrific in the two games that we’ve had and we want more of that. We can go through to the next round now, and whoever we meet, we’re confident that we can go further."
And Beaglehole was full of praise for captain Hopper, who has now netted three times in his last four games and has helped his side register four consecutive wins in all competitions.
He added: “I’m a big fan of Tom Hopper. I’ve had him in the youth team, he’s been in the reserves and he’s been out on loan.
“You always know what you’re going to get from him. He always gives 100 per cent and I’m delighted that he’s got the three goals because he went through a bit of a patch where he possibly wasn’t finishing as well. He’s what this team is about – honesty, work ethic and he epitomises that for me."