- Marc Albrighton says Leicester City’s supporters have boosted his confidence following their warm King Power Stadium welcome
- The Foxes midfielder returned to action on Friday following a lengthy spell out with a hamstring injury
- Albrighton revealed he was inspired by his City team-mates, who had won four games under Brendan Rodgers prior to the loss to Newcastle
The Leicester City No.11 hadn’t featured since the 1-1 Premier League draw at Anfield, missing nine fixtures before returning to action during the 1-0 defeat by Newcastle United.
While he would have liked to have marked his Foxes comeback with a victory, the winger spoke highly of the relationship he has with the Club’s supporters, who gave him a standing ovation as he made his way back onto the King Power Stadium pitch.
“It is fantastic,” said Albrighton of his reception on Friday night. “I have a great relationship with the supporters at this club.
“They have been great to me since day one and for them to give me that reception after the tough time I have had in recent weeks was great for me personally and gets my confidence straight up.
“It was just a shame the circumstances weren’t great. I would rather come up on with the game in a different situation and us a couple of goals to the good. It wasn’t to be and we move onto the next game.”
While originally expected to be out until the end of the 2018/19 campaign, Albrighton says his determination and the dedication of the Club’s medical staff have assisted him in making a return ahead of schedule.
“It has been tough,” added Albrighton. “It is the first hamstring injury I have had and when I first did it, I knew it felt bad. The last nine or 10 weeks have been hard work. The first few weeks I was completely off and I had to rest it.
“I had the operation then and once I was back down the training ground the new manager had come in and there was a buzz around the place.
“I am chomping at the bit to get out there and to be sitting on a bed watching the boys out there enjoying themselves and coming in from training saying how good it is, and seeing how well they have been doing in recent weeks performance-wise at the weekend, it is tough to watch when you can’t contribute.
“It makes you strive to get back as quickly as possible and that is what I have done.”