Luke what he’s achieved so far!
FROM BEING A SEASON TICKET-HOLDER, BALL BOY AND ACADEMY PROSPECT TO FIRST TEAM PLAYER... YES, IT’S BEEN QUITE A JOURNEY FOR THE TEENAGE FULL-BACK
YOUNG Leicester City left-back Luke Thomas is aiming to kick on after overcoming the shock of playing so many games.
The Syston-born teenager was thrust into the limelight amid City’s injury problems at the end of last season, and has retained his spot in the first-team squad this year, starting 11 matches across the Premier League and Europa League.
It’s been a sharp rise for Thomas who over the course of 13 years has gone from season ticket-holder to ball boy to academy prospect to first-team star, and he is still coming to terms with the number of opportunities he has been given.
He produced excellent performances in away wins at Leeds and Aston Villa while he scored his first goal for the club in a dramatic 3-3 draw at Braga in the Europa League.
The highlight remains the day of his breakthrough though, his senior debut against Sheffield United at the end of last season.
“It was probably the best moment of my career so far,” Thomas told City’s matchday programme.
“When you make your debut there’s no better feeling to be honest.
“At the time I was really nervous but since then I’ve built into the group and played a lot more games than I was expecting to.
“It was a shock to the system at the time but it was really good for me, and thankfully I’ve been able to get more game-time since then.
“The manager likes to give young players a chance and that’s why my opportunity came.
“He gave me the chance to come up and train and when I showed him the qualities I have, he spoke to me about coming into the team.
“I remember when he told me I was playing the next day; that was a shock! But that’s what he’s like.
“He always wants to give young players a chance and for every academy player out there, that’s what you want. It has been an unbelievable experience so far.
“Considering it’s my first full season with the team, the manager has given me so many opportunities to play.
“All I want to do is play football and get as many games as possible, so it has been brilliant so far.
“Game-time can only be a good thing for my development and I feel like I’m getting better each week.” Since a defeat to Arsenal in February where Thomas struggled in a battle with Nicolas Pepe, the teenager has been an unused substitute, with Timothy Castagne, Ricardo Pereira, and Marc Albrighton taking on the full-back or wing-back roles. He’s been working on his game in training, and was able to focus on his development even more over the recent international break, when the lack of games and a smaller training group allowed greater one-to-one time with the coaches.
“We’ve had a small group of about 12 of us so that has been great for me personally, because I’ve been able to work on my game with the coaches,” he said.
“When there are less players to cover, the coaches can spend more time with you individually which obviously means you can take on more information and keep improving. I’ve found it really beneficial.
“There are always things you can improve on, no matter how experienced you are.
“Everybody has their strengths and weaknesses so it’s important you understand them and make improvements where you can.”