Rodgers Points To Leicester's Spirit Despite Defeat

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Rodgers Points To Leicester's Spirit Despite Defeat

Brendan Rodgers says Leicester City fought until the very end in Boxing Day's dramatic 6-3 defeat by Manchester City at Etihad Stadium.

2021-12-27T07:54:05.591Z

Rodgers Points To Leicester's Spirit Despite Defeat

Brendan Rodgers says Leicester City fought until the very end in Boxing Day's dramatic 6-3 defeat by Manchester City at Etihad Stadium.

2021-12-27T07:54:05.591Z

Rodgers Points To Leicester's Spirit Despite Defeat

Brendan Rodgers says Leicester City fought until the very end in Boxing Day's dramatic 6-3 defeat by Manchester City at Etihad Stadium.

2021-12-27T07:54:05.591Z

Rodgers Points To Leicester's Spirit Despite Defeat

Brendan Rodgers says Leicester City fought until the very end in Boxing Day's dramatic 6-3 defeat by Manchester City at Etihad Stadium.

2021-12-27T07:54:05.591Z

Rodgers Points To Leicester's Spirit Despite Defeat

Brendan Rodgers says Leicester City fought until the very end in Boxing Day's dramatic 6-3 defeat by Manchester City at Etihad Stadium.

2021-12-27T07:54:05.591Z

- Leicester City were beaten 6-3 at Manchester City on Boxing Day- The Foxes recovered from a four-goal deficit with three second-half strikes of their own- While the match ultimately got away from them, Brendan Rodgers was proud of his side's spirit- Several of the Club's key senior defenders continue to be out with injuries

First-half strikes from Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gündogan, Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling put the Premier League champions in a commanding position at the interval, but the Foxes hit back through James Maddison, Ademola Lookman and Kelechi Iheanacho.

There were late opportunities for Iheanacho and Marc Albrighton as well for Leicester, but further efforts from Aymeric Laporte and Sterling ultimately put the match beyond the visitors and secured all three points for Pep Guardiola's top-flight leaders.

Things could have been different had Iheanacho or Albrighton converted chances that would have seen Leicester net their fourth goal in a hectic second-half spell and set up an enthralling finish at Etihad Stadium, but ultimately it wasn’t to be.

There were, however, some impressive individual performances, including from Maddison, who Rodgers picked out for praise after his third goal in as many games and sixth in his last eight.

“You could see the response in the second half, they were absolutely brilliant,” Leicester’s manager enthused. “They made a game of it and they arguably could have got something from the game.

“They were big chances, Kels (Kelechi Iheanacho) has a great chance and the ‘keeper makes a really good save and Marc [Albrighton] gets in really well. It’s a great cross from Luke [Thomas] and he makes the header. We created opportunities through some great football.

“I thought he (James Maddison) was absolutely brilliant today. He was a real catalyst for us. Concentration, work-rate... he was a star for us, he was outstanding.”

Despite defeat, Rodgers felt the fighting spirit shown by the players is a positive that they can take away from the game, especially given the injury-hit condition of the squad. The three goals also gave the 3,000 Leicester supporters who travelled up to the North West something to cheer.

"It’s so important for the supporters,” the 48-year-old added. “They come here and at half-time they must have been thinking: ‘What’s going to happen in the second half?’ We’re playing against one of the best teams in the world, but I think they can be very proud of the team in the second half.

“You could see we’ve got players [out] that, for us, make a huge difference. We don’t carry a squad like Man City or Liverpool or Chelsea and some of these other teams. So when we have the players out that we do, it’s a big ask for us, but the one thing that you must always have, is spirit. You could see that in bundles today.

"They were poor goals which we’ve given away in one or two moments, but at least they can have that pride in the team that they kept fighting until the very end.”

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