- Under-23s boss Steve Beaglehole speaks to LCFC TV after Friday's 3-2 extra-time defeat by Aston Villa
- Leicester City's Development Squad exit the Premier League Cup at the semi-finals stage
- Beaglehole was, however, keen to express his pride after a landmark season for the Club's youngsters
Aston Villa emerged from King Power Stadium with a 3-2 win in extra-time, courtesy of goals from Jack Clarke and Rushian Hepburn-Murphy (2) during an entertaining fixture.
While Yohan Benalouane and George Thomas twice gave the Foxes hope of securing their place in next month’s final, Villa ultimately stifled them in the latter stages to progress.
Beaglehole, though, was keen to draw the positives from a campaign in which Academy trio Hamza Choudhury, Harvey Barnes and Josh Knight made their senior debuts for the Club.
Following Monday's 3-1 win over Derby County, City also remain second in Premier League 2 Division 1 after being forced to stave off relegation over previous seasons.
“You can’t doubt the spirit and determination of the lads, but it’s a tough pill to take after having lost the league as well in the last couple of weeks,” Beaglehole told LCFC TV.
“I’m sure they feel the same as I do that it’s the last game of the season and I feel more deflated initially than the last two seasons.
“We finished on a high to stay in the league [last season], that’s how far we’ve come and, when you get close to winning something, the focus becomes on winning something.
“The bigger picture is we’ve got two players regularly involved with the first team and we’ve had a number of players in and around it.
“Some people knock Under-23s football, saying it’s not conducive to producing players. I disagree - the players we’ve had this season have played against top players.”
While Beaglehole believes fatigue played a role in their defeat on Friday, the Under-23s manager heaped praise on their visitors, a side the Under-23s know well from previous terms.
“We’ve had a lot of games, a lot of football and, a month or two ago, we might’ve gone on to win the game tonight in extra-time,” he added.
“I have to say, Villa were excellent on the night, they kept their shape, they made it difficult for us and good luck to them in the final.”