Chilwell Buzzing To Be Back

First Team
12 Jun 2020
2 Minutes
Leicester City left-back Ben Chilwell says the whole squad is looking forward to the Foxes' long-awaited return to Premier League action, following a three-month break due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

- Leicester City resume the Premier League season at Watford on Saturday 20 June (12:30pm kick-off)
- The Foxes haven’t played a competitive game since beating Aston Villa 4-0 in early March
- Chilwell revealed that the team’s fitness levels have been particularly pleasing
- He believes there is a lot to play for with nine league games and an Emirates FA Cup Quarter-Final tie to come 

Some 103 days will have passed between games when City step back onto the pitch to resume their Premier League campaign at Vicarage Road.

A 4-0 home victory over Aston Villa on 9 March kept City in third position in the Premier League table, ahead of next Saturday’s 12:30pm kick-off at Watford for Gameweek 30.

Brendan Rodgers' side also have an Emirates FA Cup Quarter-Final to play, with Chelsea the visitors to King Power Stadium on Sunday 28 June (4pm kick-off). 

And after several weeks of training back at Belvoir Drive, Chilwell and his team-mates are excited by the prospect of a return to competitive action.

“It’s been months now since our last match so we’re all raring to go,” the England international admitted when speaking to LCFC TV, from an appropriate distance, earlier this week.

“We played a few practice games at King Power Stadium so we’re all sharp and we’ve got a lot to play for, so hopefully we’ll be ready.

We did the fitness tests a few weeks ago and all our scores were really good, so we’re really fit and looking forward to playing games again.

Ben Chilwell LCFC TV

“We’re all looking pretty good. We did the fitness tests a few weeks ago and all our scores were really good, one of the best set of scores I’ve seen since I’ve been at the Club, for everyone, so we’re really fit and looking forward to playing games again.” 

The 23-year-old believes the detailed fitness plans City's squad completed before their return to training helped to keep the players in good shape, ahead of what will be a hectic end to the season. 

But while things are now returning to normal on the training pitch, the off-field regulations have been strictly followed by all players and staff at the training ground and stadium.

Initially working in groups of no more than five, adhering to COVID-19 social distancing guidelines, clubs are partaking in contact training as part of the Premier League’s Return to Training Protocol.

With the health of players and staff remaining the Club's top priority, City's stars undergo COVID Antigen Testing (CAT) twice weekly to ensure the working environment adheres to the highest safety standards.

“Obviously we had the social distancing aspect to begin with for the first few weeks,” the full-back explained.

“While we’re on the pitch it’s obviously normal now but between the sessions and when we leave the training ground, normal rules apply in terms of social distancing.

“Training’s normal but apart from that, we are following the rules.”

All times BST.