Kasper Schmeichel: Leicester not under the same pressure as Premier League big spenders
Kasper Schmeichel says Leicester City are not under the same pressure as their big-spending Premier League rivals.
Leicester came into the new campaign having achieved their second highest league finish in almost 60 years, but the frustration of losing a 14-point lead and eventually finishing outside Champions League places in fifth has shaped the early-season narrative around the club.
But Schmeichel feels Leicester’s two wins from two against West Brom and Burnley show they are not carrying the burden of pressure which some of their bigger spending rivals are.
Speaking ahead of Sunday’s game against Manchester City, live on Sky Sports, he said: „Last year we had a great first three quarters of the season, played really well in parts. We started to lose some consistency after Christmas, but we felt we were getting back just before lockdown when we beat Villa.
„Lockdown changed a lot of things, a lot of so-called bigger clubs got players back from injury and we lost a few to injury and we weren’t able to get there in the end. If you take the emotion out of it and look back, would we have taken that position at the start? We probably would.
„In terms of this season, we are aiming as high as we can. The pressure is on the big boys who have spent a lot of money. We’re just going to try try and keep plugging away and we’ll see where that takes us.
„We’ve had two tough games and getting six points out of that was obviously the aim. The West Brom game was a strange game, it would have been a different affair with fans there.
„A gritty performance against Burnley, to score four goals against them is an achievement.“
‘Mendy, Choudhury to step up in Ndidi absence’
Leicester were rocked by news that influential midfielder Wilfred Ndidi could be out for up to 12 weeks earlier this week.
The Nigerian, who has been operating as a makeshift central defender, suffered an abductor injury in the win over Burnley, giving Nampalys Mendy and Hamza Choudhury a chance to make an impression in Rodgers’ first team.
„Wilf is a top class player, you take him out of any side they will feel the effect of it,“ Schmeichel added.
„That’s our challenge, we have expectations, players can come in and play that position, it is up to them.
„[Nampalys] has played well these last two games stepping into that role, Hamza [Choudhury] and the other boys can make their case.
‘Castagne helped by Belgian Foxes’
New signing Timothy Castagne has caught the eye in both Premier League wins since his arrival from Atalanta last month.
Schmeichel echoed manager Brendan Rodgers’ praise for the defender and the Foxes other recent Belgian imports.
„He’s been really good, he’s come in a slotted in a straight away. He has a great personality and is a good guy,“ Schmeichel said.
„Unfortunately I lost to him when Belgium played Denmark, so I met him after that game for he first time, Youri [Tielemans] and Denis [Praet] introduced me. Having those two here already has been good for him settling in.
„You can see by from his performances he is playing really well.“
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