Puel: A Good Point, But We Had Chances To Win It
- Leicester City had the potential to defeat Liverpool on Wednesday evening, says manager Claude Puel
- The Foxes drew 1-1 with the league leaders at Anfield
- Harry Maguire cancelled out Sadio Mane’s early opener
A disappointing start to the game saw Sadio Mane open the scoring with only three minutes on the clock, presenting City with a huge task against the Premier League leaders.
However, they matched their Merseyside opponents in both skill and work rate and earned a 1-1 draw thanks to Harry Maguire’s effort on the stroke of half-time.
“It was a good point, but I don’t know if it’s a fair result because we had more chances than Liverpool, I think,” Puel reflected. “We conceded another goal early in the game. We are leading in conceding a goal in the first 15 minutes.
“It is a shame because we are having to chase the game all the time to get back. After, we showed fantastic character, personality and quality also. I think we suffered a little too much at the beginning, it was difficult to recover the ball.
“We changed the system a little to try to have more possibility to recover the ball and start better when we do. After, we had good chances with [James] Maddison and got a goal just before half-time. It was the right moment, of course.”
Buoyed by Maguire’s leveller, City could have taken the lead early in the second period when the England international headed down into the path of Wilfred Ndidi, who couldn’t convert from close range.
“We started the second half with fantastic feeling, good quality, good pressing, good work and quality on the pitch,” continued the manager. “It was perfect. We had fantastic chances and I think we need to be more clinical in these moments.
“We kept a good structure and worked hard on the pitch to recover the ball, to start well under pressure and under strong pressing we kept our calm all the time. We played a fantastic defensive game and with the quality to start with the ball after recovering.
“This, for me, is the right level and I don’t know if it’s a fair result. Of course, before the game, one point was a good result, but I think at the end we could have had another result.”
With fixtures against Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur coming up, Puel hopes his side will be inspired by their display against Jürgen Klopp’s outfit.
He added: “Of course, we have this ability to have good concentration and the right focus against the big teams. The next two games will be against big teams.
“We don’t know the results, but I think we will have a good response, a good mentality and attitude in our games. We always have to improve and not concede goals early because it is so difficult to get back and change the game. It’s also a good thing to show our character in this moment.”