Beaglehole Enthused By Brighton U23s Draw
- Leicester City's Development Squad drew 1-1 with Brighton & Hove Albion Under-23s on Monday
- Kasey McAteer's opener was levelled by a Harvey Godsmark-Ford own goal in the second half
- Steve Beaglehole was pleased with the application of his players at LCFC Training Ground
- The Under-23s coach also looks ahead to next week's visit of Chelsea to Seagrave
Following four consecutive defeats in Premier League 2 Division 1, Kasey McAteer deservedly headed the young Foxes in front at LCFC Training Ground, before an unfortunate own goal from Harvey Godsmark-Ford in the second period saw Brighton draw level.
Reflecting on the clash, which leaves City's Under-23s 11th in the top tier of the Premier League 2 set-up, Senior Professional Development Phase Coach Beaglehole was pleased with the effort on show.
"I think it was a fair result," he told LCFC TV. "We were the better side in the first half and I think we defended too deeply in the second half. We couldn’t get out.
"They dictated play in the second half and got a penalty, which they missed, so then you think it might be our night if we get the rub of the green. Obviously, it was an improvement on our last two or three games, in terms of we’ve only conceded one goal.
"If we could have kept that, it would’ve been a great win for us. We’re happy we’ve not lost and it’s certainly an improvement."
Beaglehole was also keen to pick out American goalkeeper Chituru Odunze who, on his full debut for the Club's Under-23s, performed admirably, especially as Brighton looked more threatening in the latter moments.
"I thought he did really well, I was really pleased with him," Beaglehole added. "He made a great save, when he pushed one over the bar.
"He was calm when he got the ball at his feet. He needs to improve his range of kicking, but other than that, I thought it was a really good debut from him."
Looking ahead to City's next outing, at home against Chelsea next Monday (7pm GMT kick-off), Beaglehole added: "They will be able to put a strong side out.
"It was a good contest against them last season, with four games to go, and they will certainly have a strong side out and it’ll be another big test for us."