Leicester eye Champions League’s knockout stage
They may be slipping into a relegation
battle in the Premier League, but Leicester City can create another
piece of club history in Tuesday’s Champions League encounter with Club
Brugge.
Three points clear atop Group G and
still to concede a goal, Leicester will be assured of a knockout-round
spot if they avoid defeat against Brugge or FC Copenhagen fail to win at
home to Porto.
Leicester have taken to their first
Champions League experience like seasoned campaigners and for manager
Claudio Ranieri it is a sign that the fire from last season’s
extraordinary title win remains aflame.
“Now there is the opportunity to go to
the top of the group. It would be a fantastic achievement,” he told
Monday’s pre-match press conference at the King Power Stadium.
“I remember from the beginning, I said
for us it was important to go into the knockout phase, of the Europe
League or Champions League.
“Our fairytale continues in this way. We did something special last season and this season we are doing something special.
“For the first time in our lives we are playing in the Champions League.”
Leicester lost 2-1 at Watford in the
Premier League on Saturday — their sixth defeat of the campaign — and
currently sit just two points above the relegation zone in 14th place.
Jamie Vardy has gone 13 games without a
goal and Riyad Mahrez has found the net just twice in the league, both
times from the penalty spot.
But though their league title defence
was effectively over before it had even begun, it has not prevented them
from making a mark in Europe, where they have found their old underdog
attire still fits.
Their first three group games were all preceded by heavy league defeats, but each time Leicester bounced back to win.
They crushed Brugge 3-0 and secured
gritty 1-0 home wins over Porto and Copenhagen before grinding out the
goalless draw in Copenhagen that took them to the brink of the last 16.
– ‘We must react’ –
Along with Sevilla, Ranieri’s side are one of only two teams still to concede in this season’s competition.
Their domestic toils mean this looks
likely to be a one-off sojourn among Europe’s elite and Mahrez, for one,
is determined to atone for Leicester’s dispiriting league form.
“We see the strength of the squad and we
must react,” said the Algeria winger and Ballon d’Or nominee, who
scored twice in the reverse fixture on September 14.
“Maybe there’s frustration. It’s not that we don’t play well, it’s about losing the game. I know we’re going to react.”
Five points adrift at the foot of the
group, Brugge must claim a first win in England at the 13th attempt and
hope Copenhagen do not beat Porto if they are to pip the Danish club to
the Europa League berth.
It is a tall order, but the Belgian
champions restored a little bit of belief by winning 1-0 at Sint-Truiden
on Friday following three games without victory in all competitions.
“The joy is huge for us,” midfielder Hans Vanaken told the club website.
“We played good games at Charleroi and
Zulte Waregem, but did not get the deserved points. We played less well
(against Sint-Truiden), but we were rewarded.”
The visitors will be without suspended Dutch midfielder Ruud Vormer and injured Malian striker Abdoulay Diaby.
But coach Michel Preud’homme was able to
name Lior Refaelov in his squad for the first time since the Israel
international underwent abdominal surgery in August.
Ranieri has confirmed that close-season
signing Islami Slimani will be unavailable due to a groin injury,
leaving Shinji Okazaki and Ahmed Musa competing for the right to partner
Vardy in attack.
In the absence of first-choice
goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who has a fractured hand, German
Ron-Robert Zieler is due to make his Champions League debut between the
posts for Leicester.
AFP
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