Providing A Platform To Keep Building, Says Dewsbury-Hall
- Leicester City beat Birmingham City 3-2 at St. Andrew's Stadium
- Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored his seventh goal of the season on Monday evening
- Stephy Mavididi netted the other Leicester goals
- The Foxes are three points clear of Ipswich Town at the top of the Sky Bet Championship
Action continued on Monday for the Foxes, who made the short trip to St. Andrew's Stadium to face a 17th-placed Birmingham side in the Sky Bet Championship.
Goals in either half saw Enzo Maresca’s side seal their fourth consecutive win – their 18th of the term, and goalscorer Dewsbury-Hall was full of praise for his sides’ ability to get the job done.
“It was a great win, and a very important win for us tonight,” the midfielder stated. “It gives us a good little platform to build on. It was a tough game, they weren’t bad, and there were times where you saw in the second half that they brought big lads on to try and go for it.
“They were fantastic counter-attacks for the first two goals, and that shows the ability we’ve got in terms of individual quality if we need it. It was very quick from one end to the other and two very good goals.
“Sometimes you need to do that. It’s not always build-up plays to score, it’s scoring quick. It's very pleasing and a good goal in the second half before grinding out the result.”
Leicester took Birmingham by storm with two fluid counter-attacks in the first half, rounded off by Stephy Mavididi and Dewsbury-Hall, and the No.22 explained how this is something they work on in training, even though it differs from the considered build-up play which has become recognisable among the City supporters.
He went on to talk about the important influence that wide players, Mavididi and Abdul Fatawu, have had on the team’s resurgence, and believes Jamie Vardy, who is currently sidelined with injury, would’ve been proud with how he took Leicester’s second goal.
“You’d be surprised, we work on counter-attacks a fair bit,” Monday’s goalscorer continued. “Obviously, we have our process, but counter-attacking is a big part of the game and some teams, that’s all they rely on.
“It not what we rely on mainly but it’s nice to have that in the locker, and it showed tonight with two good goals. If we need it again in the future, I’m sure we’ll continue to do so.
Leicester Seal The Points At Birmingham
Stephy Mavididi hit a brace and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall also struck in Leicester City's win at Birmingham City.
“I think he (Vardy) would be pleased with the goal I scored tonight... Vardy-like pace as well! It's a great ball by Abdul [Fatawu] and we got told before the game that there goalkeeper likes to come out of his goal and as I went through I had a look up and saw he was out so it was a matter of taking it around him and staying composed.
“They (Mavididi and Fatawu) were very good tonight. From minute one, they were causing problems, and they got their rewards with their goal contributions tonight so I’m very proud of them because they work hard.
“They have great flair, but they also work hard for the team so when you have both of them, it makes you a very effective player and hopefully they keep their form going because they’re doing well.
“The main objective is to have a nice calm finish, so we don’t have to stress, but it’s football. You can’t determine what that’s going to be like. We’ve come to a tough ground tonight and they’re also trying to get momentum going so it makes it tough.
“It shows we’ve got the other side of our game, with the grittiness, and it’s not always going to be sunshine and rainbows so I’m glad we showed both sides of our game.”
With over 2,500 supporters making the journey to Birmingham, Dewsbury-Hall left the last word for the Foxes’ faithful, who were rewarded with magnificent celebrations in the away end following the full-time whistle.
The 25-year-old added: “To look up and not see one empty seat in the away end is credit to the fans, and I’m happy we can put on good performances for them because they spend their hard-earned money.
“The celebrations at the end are what you live for as a footballer. They’re the moments that you remember, and for me is the best feeling. It's great support and hopefully we can keep providing wins for them.”