Dewsbury-Hall: Foxes Going Full-Throttle In Pursuit Of Progression
- Leicester City travel to France for their latest UEFA Europa Conference League tie on Thursday
- Rennes are the opponents in the last-16 second leg at Roazhon Park (5:45pm kick-off).
- The Foxes won’t be adapting their approach despite a two-goal aggregate lead, says Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
- The team must show their quality again to reach the quarter-finals, he adds during Wednesday’s press conference
The Foxes hold a 2-0 aggregate lead over their French counterparts from the opening leg at Leicester City Stadium, courtesy of goals from Marc Albrighton and Kelechi Iheanacho, though the Academy graduate knows that this last-16 tie is far from over.
Given the quality that Les Rouge et Noir have at their disposal, continuing their standing as the second highest scorers in Ligue 1, and boasting a strong home record, Dewsbury-Hall revealed during Wednesday’s pre-match press conference that he is expecting another examination of their credentials when they arrive at Roazhon Park on Thursday (5:45pm kick-off).
“They are good footballing team and they have some good individuals,” the Shepshed-born midfielder told the assembled media at LCFC Training Ground while analysing the hosts. “We saw that in the first leg. They do have great quality and they showed that in spells.
Albrighton & Iheanacho Open Up UECL Lead
A stunner from Marc Albrighton and Kelechi Iheanacho's late strike give Leicester City a 2-0 advantage over Rennes the UEFA Europa Conference League.
“We know that they are doing well in the French league, they score a lot of goals and they don’t really concede many. It’s good that we’ve got the little cushion, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to take our foot off the gas. We want to go there and play our game.
"We know that we can nullify their threats, we’ve shown that. When we’re at our best, we can create chances and score goals. It’s going to be a different atmosphere at their place but I’m sure that we’re going to be going there hoping to get through to the last-16 of the competition.”
Since moving into the inaugural Europa Conference League knockout rounds, there has been a focus on striving to reach the latter stages of the tournament, a motivation shared across the squad.
Come Thursday, Leicester will be looking to impose their own attacking mentality on Rennes, and use the experience present within the team, in order to give themselves the best chance of progressing into the quarter-finals - a message that the manager has instilled.
The 23-year-old continued: "He (Brendan Rodgers) said to just relax. It’s a big game for everyone at the Club and all of the fans, we know that. We’re treating it as a massive game, but don’t want that to have a negative impact on our performance. We want to be relaxed out there.
“We’re more than capable of winning the game. No matter what happens in the game, we don’t get flustered. Everyone knows that we’ve got great quality in the squad and we can go far in this tournament. if we take that into the game, we’re more than good enough to progress.
“I just feel like it’s a game where if we put them under pressure, we make it uncomfortable for them, that’s where we get our opportunities. There were times in the first leg where that happened and we got great opportunities. We know when our players our showing our quality, it’s hard for anyone to deal with. We saw that in the first leg with two great goals.”
Dewsbury-Hall has become an integral part of Leicester’s make-up this season, featuring 28 times across all competitions, with his two goals both coming in European competition, including one in the previous round's success over Randers.
Praising Rodgers for giving him the opportunity to stake his claim for a spot in the team, the box-to-box central midfielder is set on reaching even higher heights with his boyhood Club.
Leicester Strike Four Times In Randers Success
Wilfred Ndidi, Harvey Barnes, Patson Daka and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall were on the scoresheet in the UEFA Europa Conference League.
“I’m delighted to play as many games as I have over the last couple of months,” the former Blackpool and Luton Town loanee enthused. “It was always something that I believed would happen and I knew I just had to be patient. I’m happy that the gaffer has shown trust in me to be able to keep playing me and hopefully I’ve repaid him.
“A lot of credit has got to go to the manager especially, because he’s done everything for me. When he came, I was playing in the Under-23s and just learning my trade. I hadn’t played any first team games yet, so he’s shown a massive amount of trust in me.
“I’m so glad that I’ve been able to show a bit of trust back. He gives me great motivation. That’s all you want as a player; you want your manager to have faith in you and believe in you and it resonates back. It makes you want to work so hard for the team and for the Club.
“It’s a great relationship. I’m looking now to just keep going forward and helping the team as much as possible and keep progressing. I’m just trying to play as well as I can for Leicester. It’s only a positive the better I do, both for me and the Club.”
All times GMT.