Jamie Vardy
Brendan Rodgers is mulling over whether to start Jamie Vardy as he looks to put out the most intense Leicester City team possible for tonight’s clash with Southampton. The manager’s decision will come down to how Vardy playing may affect the collective. Asked if he would consider playing the number nine at St Mary’s,
Brendan Rodgers said: “You’ll find out. It’s based around communication and feeling. We’ve given opportunities to the other strikers in European games and to give Jamie that opportunity to recover. This game on Wednesday is a day earlier than normal as well. I’ll have a chat with him to get a feel for where he’s at. It’s managing him, but he’s very easy to manage. Most players want to play every minute of every game, but as a manager you have to decide what is best for the team to keep that intensity and running ability in the team. You know how players will think because no player will tell you they don’t want to play even if they’re shattered. As a manager you have to decide if it affects the intensity, the pressing ability and the penetration of your team. Up until this point, we’ve worked it fairly well with him. It’s not just about Jamie, it’s about the other players. He gets the goals but it’s not one guy the team is built around. He’s there to feed off the movement and quality of passes of the other players, and there’s not too many better when he’s in those positions. It’s about managing that. We have other players who can come into the game, and you’re always thinking of the best team. You can’t get too emotional with it. It has to be the collective. He’ll be a threat if he starts or if he comes off the bench. And if he’s not involved, he’ll be ready for the next game.”
Vardy’s latest brace of goals put him just two goals behind Mo Salah in the division’s scorers chart, while also made him third on City’s all-time list.
