Vardy In State Of Shock

Vardy’s tale of a meteoric rise from non-league to Premier League in just three seasons is one that the media are keen to tell, and for Vardy, who was gearing up for his summer holidays when the news broke, it’s hard to believe. 

“I was in shock,” he told Foxes Player. “That’s the only way I can describe it. I wasn’t expecting it one bit. I got a text message while I was out doing my holiday shopping, which I’ve had to put on hold. 

“To be honest it’s not really settled in yet, I’m still trying to get my head around it. The battery on my phone died very quickly after the squad got released and I didn’t charge it up again until I got to bed that night.” 

There had been speculation that the England boss may choose to name Vardy in his squad after his performances helped City complete a stunning escape from relegation, but it was not something on the striker’s radar. 

“I didn’t take much notice of the talk at all,” he said of media stories surrounding a call-up. “I found out that the England manager had been to the Southampton match but you’d have thought he’d have been watching Southampton’s England internationals who have already played for their country, so I took no notice of it whatsoever. 

“I don’t know [how it has happened]. A lot of hard work, that’s all I can say. I’ve had to put a lot of hard work in, get over a few bad times and knuckle down. It’s just about hard work and graft. 

“I owe Nigel Pearson a lot. He gave me a chance to play league football to start with. Now we’ve managed to get out of the Championship to play in the Premier League and he’s given me the opportunity to play at this level as well.” 

And for England fans eager to find out what City fans have long known about their number nine, Vardy was happy to tell them exactly what they’ll be getting. 

“Energy, aggression and pace. It’s as simple as that."