Barnes Hoping To Put On A Show For The Blue Army
- Leicester City welcome Wolves to King Power Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick-off)
- Harvey Barnes speaks inside the latest issue of CITY Matchday Magazine, which is available for £3
- The Academy graduate talks pre-season and his excitement for the season opener
The Foxes are in Premier League action for the first time this season on Saturday, tackling Wolverhampton Wanderers at King Power Stadium (3pm kick-off), with Barnes in contention to feature for Brendan Rodgers’ side.
A knee injury ended a successful 2020/21 campaign for the 23-year-old in late February, after the Academy graduate had scored 13 goals across all formats for the Foxes in domestic and European competitions.
Following a summer of rehabilitation and recovery work, supported by the Club’s medical staff at LCFC Training Ground, the former West Bromwich Albion loanee participated in City’s 3-3 pre-season draw with Queens Park Rangers, getting minutes under his belt for the first time.
Barnes also started the meeting with Villarreal at King Power Stadium, scoring in the 3-2 win against the UEFA Europa League winners, ahead of playing a key role in the Club’s FA Community Shield success over Manchester City.
“I’m feeling really good,” he told CITY Matchday Magazine earlier this week. “I feel like I’ve come back in really good shape and, on the match fitness side, I think I’m pretty much there now.
“I’ve had a good pre-season, where I was able to gradually build up my minutes from game to game. The work I did during the off-season has really helped and put me in good stead for the season ahead. Hopefully I can pick up from where I left off.”
Looking ahead to the much-anticipated Premier League opener, Barnes is expecting a tough test against Bruno Lage’s Wolves, while the prospect of supporters returning to fill King Power Stadium is only ramping up the excitement within the camp.
He explained: “Wolves are never easy opponents and as you’ve seen over the last few seasons, games between us are usually quite tight.
“They obviously have a new manager now so there will be an element of the unexpected with them. But we’re feeling confident ourselves and really looking forward to it.
“As we’ve said all along, football just hasn’t been the same without fans. As much as we did get used to playing without crowds, there was always an element missing. The return of fans will help to add that special element to games again.
“They play a really big role for us; they can be the 12th man and really pull you through the difficult moments. It’s great to have them back and we’ll be hoping to put on a show for them.”
You can pick up a copy of Saturday’s edition of CITY Matchday Magazine from sellers outside King Power Stadium for just £3.
All times BST.