Danny Ward and Daniel Iversen will fight for the Leicester City number one shirt as Kasper Schmeichel edges towards an emotional farewell at the club. City boss Brendan Rodgers will place his faith in two goalkeepers already at the club should Schmeichel complete a move to Nice. The manager is expecting an answer on his skipper’s future this week, with reports from France on Tuesday suggesting an £850k fee has been agreed between the two clubs, with Schmeichel finalising details on a three-year deal.
Brendan Rodgers said: “Kasper’s situation is well-documented so we’re hoping that one way or another we can get a solution to that this week. He deserves the respect for his time here and everything he’s given the club to be able to look at it and decide what’s best going forward. I think for any player of that age, the longevity is important in the contract that you might get. When you are 35 years of age and you can get a three-year contract, for example, then that will play a part in a player’s thinking. It’s not all on Kasper (for a deal to go through). There are other things behind it so it’s not purely on him making a decision. There are other intricacies around what the deal would be from club to club, so it’s not all on him waiting to decide. There are other things that have to be right but, of course, the quicker it is resolved then the better but hopefully that can be done soon.”
Iversen started City’s final pre-season friendly against Sevilla on Sunday night and has given himself a chance of being a first-choice Premier League goalkeeper after winning the player of the year for Preston last season. But it looks like Ward has the edge as things stand after four years as Schmeichel’s able deputy. Rodgers said on Sunday evening in reference to the goalkeeping situation that the club “are always looking forward and always looking to see where the team can improve”. That process began last season, when Ward was handed his Premier League debut against Watford in May.
Brendan Rodgers said: “Danny Ward is an exceptional keeper. I’ve always said we’ve got a number one keeper there. He’s had some issues around his knee but that looks to be behind him now, he’s been training well. He’s looked good. If Kasper is to go, he’s a big possibility for us. Daniel Iversen has been out on loan and shown he’s a very competent goalkeeper. At 25 years of age, he’s got experience, so he’s here. I think we would still need to bring in another one as a back-up. I’d be happy with that. I worked with Danny and I knew his talent from Liverpool. He’s been really unfortunate here in that Kasper has never been injured. He’s been a really loyal and supportive number two. It’s a ‘what-if’ scenario so if Kasper was to move on, we saw him (Ward) against Watford, how he comes for crosses, how he takes the ball. He can deal with the ball at his feet. He was an international keeper with Wales until he picked up a little knock so I’ve got every confidence in him to go in and do a great job. Daniel Iversen is there as well. We saw on Sunday night he’s a fantastic shot stopper. He’s improved so much with his feet since I first came in. That’s the job, you come in here year on year and you want to improve and develop the ones you have. It’s just about opportunity. I think from a goalkeeping perspective, we know where we’re going and we’ll hopefully this week sort that out.”
