VARDY PERENNIAL
Late bloomer Jamie is backed to join the century club after spending his lockdown deep in the rose beds
GREEN-FINGERED Jamie Vardy is out to show he is the brightest late bloomer of them all.
The Leicester hitman bids to join the Premier League’s 100 Club with a goal at Watford today.
Vardy has been stuck on 99 goals during lockdown and has found the perfect way to take his mind off things – by gardening.
The 33-year-old steps out of the vegetable patch desperate to clinch his century. Not bad for a player who made his first appearance in the top flight only six years ago.
Brendan Rodgers praised his remarkable goal machine, saying he is showing no signs of opting for The Good Life just yet.
Although Vardy has not been dishing out bunches of radishes at the training ground, Rodgers put in a request for a special delivery.
“All I want from him is a bunch of goals,” said the Leicester manager. “He’ll go well beyond the hundred. He’s super-fit, superfast and enjoying every minute of it. His story is absolutely phenomenal when you think he was playing non-League football at 25 and didn’t have his first game at the top level until he was 27. It’s remarkable and just shows the talent and drive he has.
“He’s inspirational in our changing room. So focused, a brilliant professional, when the games come you can see his readiness.
“This guy has inspired this club over a number of years. If he keeps that mentality, it will hopefully take us to where we want to get.”
Watford manager Nigel Pearson has known for years just how good Vardy is as he shattered the transfer record for a non-League player when he spent £1million to bring the Fleetwood striker to Leicester in 2012. Rodgers said: “Nigel took him out of non-League for a fee that a number of clubs must have baulked at. I’m sure he’s looking forward to seeing him.”
The Foxes are third in the table, desperately trying to nail down a Champions League spot, while only goal difference is keeping Watford out of the bottom three.
Rodgers added: “This last period of the season gives us a great opportunity, so there’s always that pressure there. We have to make sure we concentrate and show that desire we had before the break.”
Today is the first time Pearson will face Leicester since they fired him five years ago. Twelve months after his sacking, the team he built won the title as 5,000-1 no-hopers under Claudio Ranieri.
When Pearson was told many fans credit him with laying the foundation for that shock title triumph, he said: “Do they? If that is the case, then great. But at the moment, my absolute focus is on us retaining our status — nothing else is really important.”
His story is phenomenal and shows drive he has