Leicester City skipper Jonny Evans is desperate to help the team secure Premier League survival on the pitch, rather than just by offering words of encouragement off it. Because of injury, Evans has not started a Premier League game since early October, but was back on the bench again on Saturday for the 1-0 loss to Bournemouth after overcoming a setback in his recovery from a hamstring problem. He’s also been plagued by calf issues in a frustrating campaign for the centre-back. But having to watch City struggle from the sidelines is not what the 35-year-old wants. They’ve not kept a clean sheet in the Premier League since November and he’s keen to help the defence get back on track.
Jonny Evans said: “I’m just desperate to get out on the pitch and support the team and try to affect the match. It’s been a difficult time. Hopefully I’m over it now. It’s been stop-start with injuries. My last game was away at Bournemouth back in October. I just want to give every bit of input I can and it’s easier to do that on the pitch. I can give words of support, but as a player you want to be leading on the pitch and leading by example.”
Evans is one of very few players in the squad to have experienced relegation before, going down with West Brom in 2018. He was the captain of that side too.
Jonny Evans said: “It hurts. There’s a big dent to your pride. It’s a difficult situation to be in. Sometimes people say that you’ve got to believe in yourself and you’ve got to be confident but you have to earn the right to be confident and believe in yourself. I’m a big believer in that. You have to earn the right and all that. Things aren’t going for us at the moment but we’ve got to be strong about it and we’ve got to go out, work harder. That’s what we have to do – come together and hopefully you get the confidence and belief that comes with winning games.
