Nigerian tackler Wilfred Ndidi says Leicester City must look past last week’s 2-0 home loss to Premier League contender Arsenal as they seek to build on good elements of the encounter.
Just his second game back since recovering from injury, the defensive midfielder says in spite of the loss, he feels great and amazing to be back in the team’s first 11.
“I feel great and amazing,” he added. “There’s lot of games coming up so I need to look after myself and keep going.”
The combative midfielder returned to the Premier League XI for the first time following his injury and has played 180 minutes in the last week.
He feels The Foxes’ display was an encouraging one despite the end result at King Power Stadium, courtesy of a Mikel Merino double in the closing stages
The side looked more than a match for the title-chasing opponents for the majority of the contest, producing a resolute defensive display.
“It was a difficult game, quite a tough game,” he assessed. “We stayed on it until they scored the first goal. We knew we were still on it. We were just unlucky that we conceded that first one. We were together, stayed compact and everyone was in it.
“We’re a bit gutted because we conceded two and we should have stayed more in the game. That was the only thing. It was unlucky. Overall, we are pleased with the performance until they scored the goal.”
Naturally, the visitors had a lot of the ball, but creating chances was also in Leicester’s game plan, with Ndidi himself on the end of two opportunities in the first half, although unable to break the deadlock. There’s confidence around the group, he says.
The 28-year-old explained: “Of course, we know they are very good at keeping the ball and positioning and trying to get at us, so we tried to stick together and break on the counter. That’s why when we got the ball, we went forward quickly. We knew the game plan and we stuck to it.
“It’s just something that we need to take into the next one. Everyone is in it and we know the position that we are in at the moment. We did well to be honest, playing against a tough team. I think it’s just that we have to take the positives forward to the next game.”
