Captain won’t fill gap left by Evans in central defence
RODGERS MAY OPT FOR JUSTIN, FOFANA AND FUCHS AT BACK
BRENDAN Rodgers is unlikely to turn to skipper Wes Morgan to fill the gap left by the suspended Jonny Evans when his Leicester City side take on Everton tonight.
Evans picked up his fifth booking of the season on Sunday and will watch the clash with the Toffees from the stands.
Caglar Soyuncu is not yet fit to return, while Timothy Castagne is touch-and-go to make a return, leaving City short of defenders.
As a centre-back, Morgan would seem like the natural replacement for Evans, but Rodgers suggested the veteran’s back problems will not see him through 90 minutes, so he will have to look elsewhere.
“I don’t think that was the role for Wes in all honesty,” Rodgers said when asked if Morgan could take Evans’ spot.
“His role was to come into games when required.
“We’ve pushed him a bit more in one or two games and he broke down away in Ukraine.
“He still has a role to play. He has an important role on and off the pitch.
“We have other options we can use, but we know if we need Wes at any point (as a substitute), he’s there.”
If Castagne is not ready to play against Everton, it seems likely that Rodgers will deploy the back five from the win at Leeds, which was the last time City played in the Premier League without Evans.
Then, James Justin, Wesley Fofana, and Christian Fuchs formed the back three, with Marc Albrighton and Luke Thomas as wing-backs.
However, Rodgers also has the option of dropping Wilfred Ndidi back into the defence, as he did for the opening two fixtures of the campaign, against West Brom and Burnley, when Evans was suspended.
Whichever side he selects, Rodgers remains confident. “We’ve shown already that we can win games without Jonny,” said the City boss.
“I know his importance. We all see that within the game.
“There are players who come out and you miss their quality, and we’ll do so with Jonny’s organisational skills.
“However, we won away at Leeds when Jonny wasn’t playing, and against Burnley at home. We’ll just have to cope with it.
“I try not to get too bogged down in worrying about players not playing.
“I always think it’s a great opportunity for someone to come in and show what they can do.
“Of course there are certain players who give an extra dimension to the team, but if they’re not available, they’re not available, you can’t cry about it, you can’t moan about it, you have to put your trust in other players to do well.”