Matchday With The Manager: A Big Week, Southampton & Schmeichel's Landmark

Leicester City's upcoming Premier League double-header at King Power Stadium, Ralph Hasenhüttl's Southampton and the prospect of Kasper Schmeichel's 400th competitive outing for the Club were all talking points as Brendan Rodgers sat down with the media this week.

2021-01-16T07:00:00.000Z

by Sam Stevens

Published

16 Jan, 2021

Matchday With The Manager: A Big Week, Southampton & Schmeichel's Landmark

Leicester City's upcoming Premier League double-header at King Power Stadium, Ralph Hasenhüttl's Southampton and the prospect of Kasper Schmeichel's 400th competitive outing for the Club were all talking points as Brendan Rodgers sat down with the media this week.

Sam Stevens

2021-01-16T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager: A Big Week, Southampton & Schmeichel's Landmark

Leicester City's upcoming Premier League double-header at King Power Stadium, Ralph Hasenhüttl's Southampton and the prospect of Kasper Schmeichel's 400th competitive outing for the Club were all talking points as Brendan Rodgers sat down with the media this week.

Sam Stevens

2021-01-16T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager: A Big Week, Southampton & Schmeichel's Landmark

Leicester City's upcoming Premier League double-header at King Power Stadium, Ralph Hasenhüttl's Southampton and the prospect of Kasper Schmeichel's 400th competitive outing for the Club were all talking points as Brendan Rodgers sat down with the media this week.

Sam Stevens

2021-01-16T07:00:00.000Z

Matchday With The Manager: A Big Week, Southampton & Schmeichel's Landmark

Leicester City's upcoming Premier League double-header at King Power Stadium, Ralph Hasenhüttl's Southampton and the prospect of Kasper Schmeichel's 400th competitive outing for the Club were all talking points as Brendan Rodgers sat down with the media this week.

Sam Stevens

2021-01-16T07:00:00.000Z

Following results elsewhere, the Foxes dropped to fourth in the Premier League standings in midweek, but remain just four points adrift of leaders Manchester United as the halfway point approaches.

Seventh-placed Southampton are next up for Rodgers' men on Filbert Way this Saturday evening, before Chelsea travel to the East Midlands on Tuesday for the second act of a big four days of action.

City defeated the Saints in record-breaking fashion on the south coast last term, before falling to defeat on home soil, and the Leicester manager continues to be impressed by Hasenhüttl's side.

While Rodgers acknowledges that the Foxes' upcoming two outings hold a degree of significance in the wider context of their season, the 47-year-old has been pleased with his side's development so far.

"They’re important games, but my focus is purely on the Southampton game," he told the national media via Zoom call, in the King Power Centre at Seagrave. "This will be a tough examination for us.

"You’ve seen their last result (a 1-0 victory over Liverpool), you see the games they’ve played. They’re always in tight games and they’ve got very good players, so it will be a big test for us.

"We’re not even at the halfway point. I’m pretty calm, relaxed and pleased with where we’re at at this stage of the season, after the games and the injuries we’ve had.

"I’ve been excited watching the team these last few weeks. In our last FA Cup game, I was really pleased with the performance level and we hope that can continue for the rest of the season."

While Southampton's success over Jürgen Klopp's champions naturally made headlines, their overall performance in 2020/21 is a testament to the quality of their squad, Rodgers believes.

"They’re very well organised," the former Liverpool and Celtic manager continued. "You can see their organisation. They want to play on the front foot. They want to defend forward and press the game.

"It doesn’t surprise me. When I analyse them, I can see their qualities. Through the team, from Alex McCarthy, who I know very well, is a very, very good goalkeeper.

"Ryan Bertrand is a Champions League winner and has spent his career at the top level and was an England international player. [Kyle] Walker-Peters is on the other side.

"He’s come in and settled very quickly because he’s a good player. Jack Stephens, I saw as a young player coming through, and again he’s acquitted himself very well in the Premier League.

"He’s very good on the ball, he wants to defend. [James] Ward-Prowse in midfield has got great quality. Stuart Armstrong, I know very well. He’s a winner, he’s got power and he wants to score.

"Theo Walcott played at the highest level and wants to score goals. Danny Ings, I know very, very well. His movement’s terrific, he can link the game, he can run in behind and he can finish.

"If you look at that group of players themselves, it’s not rocket science. They’re very well organised, they’ve got an excellent manager and they work very hard.

"When you put that alongside the quality, it makes them a very good team."

Goalkeeper Schmeichel, on the other hand, could run out for the 400th time in a competitive fixture for Leicester City on Saturday, a decade after joining the Club, then in the second tier, from Leeds United.

Over that 10-year spell, the Danish stopper has lifted the Premier League and Championship titles, competed in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, and adorned the captain's armband.

Ahead of the latest landmark in a career which has also included featuring at the FIFA World Cup and winning Denmark's Player of the Year on three occasions, Rodgers spoke of his admiration for City's No.1.

"I'd already seen him from the outside looking in," he recalled. "We played against him when I was at Swansea and he was at Leeds as a young 'keeper.

"He's so passionate about the game. He loves football. He prepares himself so well. His devotion and his mentality has really seen him excel at the highest level.

"From a young player who played on loan in Scotland, to playing at Champions League level, to have over 50 caps for Denmark, he doesn't get tired every day of doing the right things.

"I can't speak highly enough of him. He's very vocal. His spirit's very strong and he wants to win. He's been a brilliant goalkeeper for me in my time here and obviously for the other managers before."

The Carnlough-born manager also elaborated on the several areas of the game in which Schmeichel thrives, with the 34-year-old regularly exhibiting his abilities with the ball at his feet.

"Ultimately, [shot-stopping] is your job as a goalkeeper," Rodgers added. "But the game has evolved with the back-pass rule and teams building up more from behind.

"For me, Kasper, from knowing him as a young 'keeper, you always knew he could kick the ball the full length of the pitch, but you can also see how good he is with his feet.

"A goalkeeper needs to stop the ball going into the net. You can be as good as you want with your feet, you can serve the ball, pass it long or short, but if you can't make saves...

"That's the beauty of Kasper. His concentration level is so high. He makes saves, but when you need him to participate in the game, to be that extra player from behind, he can do that.

"His courage and bravery to do that is also important and that's what makes him one of the top goalkeepers in the Premier League."

Schmeichel's professionalism and love of the game stands out for Rodgers, who believes the Manchester City academy product can be an inspiration for Leicester's next generation of stars at Seagrave.

"He's a real good guy," he added. "He comes in, is super professional, he's always here to do his work. He loves training, that's one of the things I would say.

"He's not a 'keeper who's in his thirties and doesn't want to do a great deal. He pushes himself to the limit every day. He's a great inspiration for the other goalkeepers and also some of our young players.

"He's got some old school values, which I really like, because the young players coming through, they need that education. He's very, very competitive too. He wants to win every game in training and takes that into games.

"He tries to always maximise his career, so he's been a huge help for me, coming in. He's a good guy, a good man and a fantastic goalkeeper."

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