‘Wiped out’ by Covid, but now Ryan is raring to go

SUMMER recruit Ryan Bertrand made his Leicester City league debut a month later than expected after being “wiped out” by Covid.

A free transfer from Southampton, Bertrand was on course to start the first game of the new Premier League campaign against Wolves in midAugust, but tested positive for Covid and subsequently missed the fixtures against West Ham and Norwich too.

He was back in the line-up against Manchester City on Saturday, replacing Luke Thomas at left-back, and says he is now looking to build his fitness again.

“I was desperate (to play),” he told LCFC TV. “We had a great pre-season, everyone was building good fitness, it was amazing to get the game here against Villarreal with some fans back and I was looking forward to the Wolves game, but the virus kicked in and it wiped me out to be honest for longer than what I expected.

“It was good to get back to myself, get training and come to play today in front of the fans. It was good to get those minutes in and hopefully I can build on them.”

Having played in the Community Shield, Bertrand’s two competitive City matches have both come against Manchester City, albeit it was a much stronger side that the

DEFENDER MADE CITY LEAGUE DEBUT A MONTH LATER THAN EXPECTED

It was good to get those minutes in and hopefully I can build on them

champions fielded at the King Power Stadium.

The 32-year-old felt he and his team-mates produced a performance worthy of at least a point, and said there were plenty of good aspects to build on, including his combination with winger Harvey Barnes on the left-hand side.

“We were resilient,” Bertrand added. “As a group we deserved something from the game.

“We’re looking at each game, looking to make steps in our fitness, in our team shape, in our tactics, in our finishing, in our defending.

We’ll take that as a step forward even though the result wasn’t ideal. He (Barnes) is so positive. I know if I can get the ball and give it to him, I can pick and choose my pockets, where to run and where to support and I’m sure we can develop something really good.”

Ryan Bertrand, pictured