Matchday With The Manager – Reinforcing Leicester's Strengths

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Matchday With The Manager – Reinforcing Leicester's Strengths

Honing in on Leicester City's strengths and maximising their collective qualities has enabled the Foxes to return to form, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.

2022-03-13T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager – Reinforcing Leicester's Strengths

Honing in on Leicester City's strengths and maximising their collective qualities has enabled the Foxes to return to form, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.

2022-03-13T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager – Reinforcing Leicester's Strengths

Honing in on Leicester City's strengths and maximising their collective qualities has enabled the Foxes to return to form, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.

2022-03-13T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager – Reinforcing Leicester's Strengths

Honing in on Leicester City's strengths and maximising their collective qualities has enabled the Foxes to return to form, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.

2022-03-13T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager – Reinforcing Leicester's Strengths

Honing in on Leicester City's strengths and maximising their collective qualities has enabled the Foxes to return to form, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.

2022-03-13T07:00:00.000Z

Despite heading into 2022 on the back of a hugely impressive victory over Liverpool at King Power Stadium, the New Year period was a tough one for City, who had to wait until 1 March for their maiden Premier League win of the calendar year.

Postponements contributed to that wait, but an Emirates FA Cup defeat at Nottingham Forest intensified the scrutiny on Leicester's form. Now, though, Rodgers' men have won five of their last six matches in all competitions – including Thursday's UEFA Europa Conference League success over Rennes.

The Foxes are once again looking upwards in the Premier League table, while also striving to prolong their run in Europe, ahead of visiting Rennes in the second leg of their last-16 tie next Thursday. Before then, however, a trip to Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal on Sunday sits on the horizon.

"I think that the Nottingham Forest game, when you lose any game, but in particular a game like that, it was a humbling experience for us," Rodgers told the media at LCFC Training Ground on Friday. "It probably reiterated a lot of what we had been saying up until that point.

"The players have come away as a group and reinforced what our strengths are and what makes us really competitive. From that game, we’ve been able to analyse ourselves honestly and openly and been able to then put a game in place – an intensity and a mentality – that allows us to get the results.

"The response of the players to that game has been outstanding, but we’ve got to keep that going and, if we can do that, while getting players back, it bodes well further into the season for us.

"The players deserve a huge amount of credit because we had to come away from that performance in the FA Cup and really take stock and take a close look at what we are all about. We’re now starting to return to what we have been for a few seasons. We’re now starting to get those results.

"The basis of it all, I’ve always said, is the work-rate. When you work hard consistently, normally that ups the win ratio as well. We’re in a good moment, but with lots of improvements to make still."

Mikel Arteta's Gunners are likely to pose a considerable threat to City's encouraging recent form. They headed into the weekend occupying a place in the top four and, with three games in hand on Manchester United and West Ham United, ambitions are firmly set on qualification for the UEFA Champions League.

"There’s a huge expectation on Arsenal," the 49-year-old explained. "This season, without European football, it’s given them a chance to reset, and I think Mikel’s done an excellent job. He’s got a group of very talented players, young players, that are hungry.

"Sometimes coaches or managers may have too much time with players, but he and his staff have clearly been able to put that to good use. They can concentrate on improving the players and improving the structure of the team.

"You can see when they come into the games that they are a very dangerous team. He’s done an excellent job and they’re in a really good position to finish in the Champions League.

"If they can avoid injuries and those types of things that can happen, then with the games in hand, they’re in a really strong position at the end of the season. Mikel’s won some trophies early on and, for a period, it’s been difficult, but that’s all a part of progress as well.

"Of course, this year, not being in Europe has allowed them to settle. They’ve used that coaching time really well because they have a lot of younger players who need coaching, they need developing, and I think he’s combined that with the senior players really well. They’ve done very, very well."

Marc Albrighton – a winner of the Premier League, FA Cup and FA Community Shield at the Club – scored a stunner for the Foxes on Thursday. It was a reminder of the 32-year-old's value to the squad and brought back memories of other European strikes against Club Brugge and Sevilla.

For Rodgers, the former Aston Villa wideman is a crucial part of the group at Leicester City and a figure who has much to offer.

"In my time here, he’s been a huge inspiration for the other players," the former Celtic manager added. "Sometimes you’ve not seen it because he’s maybe not been playing as much, but his attitude and energy around the team every single day and any time he’s played, for all of the players, is a huge inspiration.

"He’s came in and made a great impact in the game (on Thursday night). He scored a wonderful goal, assisted the other, but it’s also his level of concentration and work ethic that he puts into the team.

"That’s what being a successful team is – it’s not just about having the best players playing, it’s about the cohesion and the work and the mentality. He typifies all of that, so I’m delighted for him. I’m not surprised by it because I’ve worked closely with him for over three years and he’s a great guy for our squad."

The performances of Çağlar Söyüncü and Daniel Amartey over recent weeks have enabled City to secure three consecutive shutouts after their inability to keep clean sheets became a prominent discussion point earlier this year.

With centre-back Wesley Fofana hoping to make a return soon – after testing positive for COVID-19 on the cusp of his recovery from a fractured fibula injury – Rodgers has keen to highlight the impressive nature of the current centre-back pairing's displays.

"Probably, Wesley coming back has helped that as well!" he laughed. "It always helps and I sometimes say the best coach you can have is competition. The guys have been great – the two centre-halves and the back four, the goalkeeper, they’ve been excellent.

"Collectively, we’ve been defending much better, which has then meant that the task is much harder for the other team. Those two, they’ve defended the box very well, they’ve got the contact in the box.

"They’re being aggressive and it’s very important for us to keep our line up. They’ve worked well together, which is important, and that’s something which we didn’t see as consistently earlier on in the season. Certainly, they’ve been very good in this last phase.

"With all the games we’re having, we’re having very little rest. You can’t play the same team in every single game. It’s also good, as the manager, to know that, if you can have players back and fit and available, that normally inspires the players who have been playing to play to their highest level.

"I always think it’s important that the players feel safe physiologically, but not too safe. You’ve got to be pushed and that normally brings out the best in the performance."

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