Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
PREMIER LEAGUE IT’S NO JOKE
United warned to beware of ‘Spiderman’ Vardy who is chasing the Golden Boot and described by Rodgers as ‘deadly serious’ when it comes to scoring goals
Leicester to win 2-1
MANCHESTER UNITED be warned – Spiderman is coming to get you.
Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers says Golden Bootchasing Jamie Vardy is ready with all webs blazing in the scrap for a Champions League spot.
United visit the King Power for the winner-takes-all clash for a top-four spot, with Foxes striker Vardy top of the Premier League scorecharts.
And the 33-year-old goal machine would love to add to his tally against his old Leicester pal Harry Maguire, the former team-mate he christened Slabhead.
Rodgers can’t believe his luck that he inherited a striker he describes as world class when he walked into the club.
And he says people shouldn’t get too carried away with Vardy’s devil-may-care image because there’s another side to the character of his marksman. Rodgers (with Vardy, above) said: “He’s a very serious guy. People talk about the fun guy dressed in a Spiderman outfit but there’s a lot more to him than that.
“He comes in every day to work and he never misses a session. The only time he misses one is when I’ve told him to. But behind it all you’ve got that wonderful person who is a really good guy. There’s always a smile with him – until it comes to the game. I love working with him.”
Rodgers reckons a massive game against United with so much at stake is the kind of occasion the former England striker thrives on.
The King Power chief, former manager of Liverpool and Celtic, went on: “He’s a big-game player and this is a game that is right up his street. He’s been on fire and I’m sure he would love to finish the season on a real high.
“These are the occasions when he really comes to the fore. The Golden Boot is an individual prize but he’s the guy who finishes off our great work for the team.
“We all want him to finish as the highest scorer, which would be a remarkable achievement considering his age.
Then again, his age doesn’t really come into it because he’s as fit as anything.”
Vardy, on 23 goals, is two ahead of his closest challenger, Southampton’s
Danny Ings. Pierreemerick Aubameyang is a further one behind, with
Mo Salah and Raheem Sterling on 19.
Rodgers said: “He’s up there as one of the top strikers in the world. There are different types of striker and at this present time you have to see Jamie Vardy as one of the leading strikers in world football.”
Rodgers says that with Europa League football already guaranteed, to be in with a shot of the bigger prize is more than Leicester could have wished for. He added: “We go into the very last match against one of the genuine superpowers with a chance of overtaking them for the Champions League. That tells you how well we’ve done.
“We want to be in the Champions League – United need to be in it. It’s a different kind of pressure. We’re still in there fighting and we’ve won big games this season.”