The Players Deserve It, Says van Nistelrooy

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The Players Deserve It, Says van Nistelrooy

Ruud van Nistelrooy spoke of his pride at how his Leicester City side handled a tricky encounter with Tottenham Hotspur to come away with three points.

2025-01-27T09:00+00:00

by Sam Jones

Published

27 Jan, 2025

from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

The Players Deserve It, Says van Nistelrooy

Ruud van Nistelrooy spoke of his pride at how his Leicester City side handled a tricky encounter with Tottenham Hotspur to come away with three points.

Sam Jones

2025-01-27T09:00+00:00

The Players Deserve It, Says van Nistelrooy

Ruud van Nistelrooy spoke of his pride at how his Leicester City side handled a tricky encounter with Tottenham Hotspur to come away with three points.

Sam Jones

2025-01-27T09:00+00:00

The Players Deserve It, Says van Nistelrooy

Ruud van Nistelrooy spoke of his pride at how his Leicester City side handled a tricky encounter with Tottenham Hotspur to come away with three points.

Sam Jones

2025-01-27T09:00+00:00

The Players Deserve It, Says van Nistelrooy

Ruud van Nistelrooy spoke of his pride at how his Leicester City side handled a tricky encounter with Tottenham Hotspur to come away with three points.

Sam Jones

2025-01-27T09:00+00:00

We beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday
Goals from Jamie Vardy and Bilal El Khannouss made the difference
The Foxes move outside of relegation zone after a first Premier League win in eight
Manager Ruud van Nistelrooy assessed his team’s impressive display in the capital

A tense encounter ended 2-1 to the Foxes at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday afternoon, but only after a Spurs opener from Richarlison initially had us staring down the barrel of an eighth straight Premier League defeat.

However, City rallied to great effect in the early moments of the second half, firstly through Jamie Vardy’s leveller and then the winner from Bilal El Khannouss shortly after, prior to a resolute defensive display in the latter stages.

The 48-year-old said post-match: “I’m proud of this team, I’m proud of how we played, I’m proud of the spirit and the character they showed today in all parts of the game to get an important away win.

“They were very consistent in their levels today, mentally, emotionally, football-wise. Also, after going 1-0 down, to come back away at Spurs is a hell of an achievement, especially after the weeks before.

“I felt out of the seven losses, I only criticised our attitude in the second half in the Fulham game, because we dropped our confidence after they scored. In the other games, they were always giving everything as a team.

“Now they have started doing that. We had a great week on the training pitch with players very motivated to do well and I’m really happy that they got the three points because they deserve it.”

Making his third league start of the campaign and first since August, Bobby De Cordova-Reid played a big hand in both of the goals, providing the cross that led to the leveller before finding El Khannouss to fire home, and van Nistelrooy appreciated his contributions alongside the goalscorers.

“It was a great beginning [to the second half],” the former PSV manager analysed. “The players were calm at half-time, even though we were 1-0 down. We felt that we were on the right track [with] the way we were playing, the approach.

“The players went out and pushed each other to have a very good start to the second half, especially pressing forward and they did it really well. That gave us the momentum and the two goals.

“Bobby’s game was excellent today, in and out of possession. The two assists were vital for the win and his experience and his leadership has always been helpful for this team and the way that he works every day. An unbelievable performance from him and also Jamie’s movement in the box and Bilal’s finish, were class.

“It’s great when you’re working with players to improve certain things, the way they shoot and move. I was really pleased when that ball went in. It was the best picture for me, looking at that corner and seeing the players there celebrating with the fans. Everybody was happy and let’s work for more moments like that.”

Building confidence in the group moving forward, with another important fixture on the horizon against Everton on Saturday, City must now back up this victory in order to remain outside of the bottom three, having moved up to 17th, above Ipswich Town and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Dutchman added: “Every weekend is a big game for us but to get a win and that feeling, celebrating it together in the dressing room is big. It helps your confidence, but we also stay humble.

“We know our place in the league and that we’ll have to fight for every single point from now until the end of the season to earn our right to play in this league. Enjoy it for a day and then we’re back at work.”

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