Okazaki Ready For Saints Test

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Okazaki Ready For Saints Test

Shinji Okazaki says Leicester City are under no illusions about the task at hand as they prepare to take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday (12pm kick-off).

2017-01-21T09:00:00.000Z

by Leicester City

Published

21 Jan, 2017

Okazaki Ready For Saints Test

Shinji Okazaki says Leicester City are under no illusions about the task at hand as they prepare to take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday (12pm kick-off).

Leicester City

2017-01-21T09:00:00.000Z

Okazaki Ready For Saints Test

Shinji Okazaki says Leicester City are under no illusions about the task at hand as they prepare to take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday (12pm kick-off).

Leicester City

2017-01-21T09:00:00.000Z

Okazaki Ready For Saints Test

Shinji Okazaki says Leicester City are under no illusions about the task at hand as they prepare to take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday (12pm kick-off).

Leicester City

2017-01-21T09:00:00.000Z

Okazaki Ready For Saints Test

Shinji Okazaki says Leicester City are under no illusions about the task at hand as they prepare to take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday (12pm kick-off).

Leicester City

2017-01-21T09:00:00.000Z

- Shinji Okazaki expects another tough Premier League clash against Southampton on Sunday

- Leicester City take on Claude Puel's men this weekend on the back of a 3-0 defeat to Chelsea

- Okazaki heaps praise on the Saints and highlights them as a stern test for City this weekend

- The Foxes picked up a 2-2 draw in the same fixture last season en route to winning the title

Shinji Okazaki says Leicester City are under no illusions about the task at hand as they prepare to take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Sunday (12pm kick-off).

The Saints have lost their last four Premier League matches, the most recent of which came with a 1-0 defeat to Burnley, but Okazaki insists it would be a mistake to judge Claude Puel’s men by their recent form.

Ahead of the , the Japan striker told LCFC TV on Friday: “Southampton are a strong team I think. This season, they haven’t done as well, but I think they have a good defence.

“They are balanced with good tactics. They are a good team and I think it will be a difficult match for us.”

Discussing Saints head coach Puel, who replaced Everton-bound Ronald Koeman last summer, Okazaki was full of praise for the ex-Nice chief before emphasising the importance of preparation on Sunday afternoon.

Okazaki added: “He is an intelligent manager. Southampton have good ball possession and they have lost their striker [Charlie Austin, to injury], but they play well by passing a lot.

“They switch sides and everything I’ve watched of them has been good. We must defend and Southampton will have ball possession during the match.

“We will play with pressure on their midfield and we will have to run a lot.”

Reflecting on the 3-0 reverse to Chelsea last weekend, Okazaki feels the result did not paint the full picture against the Premier League leaders and expects a positive reaction from the current holders at St Mary’s.

“It was a strange match and we were disappointed, but we tried a new system,” he continued.

“The feeling was good, but after six minutes Chelsea scored. That wasn’t good, because we were trying to defend against them.

“The score was a little disappointing, but we tried for 90 minutes with a good spirit. Chelsea are a good team.

“We took positives because we tried a new system. We will focus our minds on the next game.”

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