DON’T BOO BEN
Chilwell within his rights to move on says Rodgers
■ by NEIL MCLEMAN BRENDAN RODGERS has urged fans to lay off Ben Chilwell on his return to the King Power Stadium today after booing the England star at the FA Cup Final.
The Leicester academy graduate was targeted by his own supporters even before his £50m transfer to Stamford Bridge for joking with Chelsea players after an FA Cup defeat in June 2020.
And the left-back was given a rough reception when he came on as a substitute at Wembley in May – unlike former Fox N’golo Kante.
But before this lunchtime’s replay of the final which Leicester won 1-0 – and Chilwell’s first return to his former club – Foxes manager Rodgers said: “Players leave and there can be a little bit of needle around that.
“But I can only speak for myself, Ben was a good guy and an outstanding talent and he decided to move on.
“He had the opportunity to leave, which he did do.
“He was ready to move on himself. And when you’re of that mindset, we knew we already had a pipeline to try to prepare for the next one coming in, the likes of James Justin.
“There was no animosity and the club did very well as a result in terms of his fee. And now he’s taking on a new challenge. I’d hope he’d get a really good welcome back.”
Leicester will be seeking a hat-trick of victories in 2021 over the European champions after winning in the Premier League in January and the FA Cup Final in May.
But Wembley goalscorer Youri Tielemans is out with a calf problem until Christmas.
And before a big week of three home games in the Premier League and Europa League, Rodgers added: “The FA Cup win, that’s part of history.
“It’s a fond memory and one that will always be with us now. That was a little while ago.
“Of course you reference from a tactical perspective some of the things within the game, you look at it.
“We believed we could win. We knew we were up against an outstanding team and they showed that a few weeks later where they were European champions.
“We showed that we have the quality to create opportunities, to be dangerous in the game, and also had the resilience and a spirit to not concede. So to win that game was really special in so many ways.
“But ultimately in the game, you have to play well, you have to run like hell in every game but in particular against the big teams.
“But we don’t sit and watch and think what an amazing day that was. That is now for the memory.
“And it’s now preparing for the team that we have been watching these last few weeks.
“There are many things we can learn from that game but it doesn’t mean anything. It’s a new game.
“And it’s a new challenge for us now this season and one that we’re excited about.”