Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
TEAM BRENDAN
Heskey reckons Leicester boss CAN keep his side together... even if they miss out on Champions League
LEICESTER legend Emile Heskey says Foxes boss Brendan Rodgers will keep his side together – even if they miss out on the Champions League.
The 2016 Premier League champions are fighting it out with Chelsea and Manchester United for third place.
And with Ben Chilwell and James Maddison among those on the wanted list of the big spenders, Foxes fans fear the side could split up if they don’t clinch a European spot.
“I believe that there’s a togetherness at Leicester and they will stay together for at least another year,” said Heskey, who made 154 league appearances for his hometown club and twice won the League Cup with them.
“They are still building and, even if they miss out on the Champions League, I think Brendan has a great chance of keeping them together because of the spirit there.
“Brendan has changed the philosophy, and playing the way they do, the players are putting themselves in the shop window. It’s up to the manager to convince them to stay and, if he can’t, it’s all about recruitment and finding the next one.
“If teams like Liverpool and Manchester United come calling, it’s only natural that players will want to look.
“These are massive clubs and, as a player, you have to be interested in what they have to say to you.”
Leicester has always been known as a selling club.
Gary Lineker, Alan Smith and Gary McAllister all won major honours after leaving the East Midlands and Heskey (left) broke Leicester hearts by joining Liverpool in an £11million switch in March 2000, after starring under Martin O’Neill.
“We were a top-10 team and won the League Cups in 1997 and 2000,” he said. “But the time was right for me to move on.
“I left because I felt I had achieved all I could achieve at Leicester and I wanted to win the league.” Heskey ended his career without getting his hands on the Premier League trophy – but was cheered by Leicester’s title triumph.
“Fans were saying after that, ‘We need to stay in the top four,’” he added. “And that was always going to be tough.
“The circumstances were right for Leicester that season.
“And when teams like Manchester United and Chelsea don’t win trophies they are going to spend big.
“They bring in millions and millions of pounds from sponsorship and merchandise that Leicester don’t. It costs a lot to get in the top four and Leicester are punching above their weight.”
The Foxes have yet to score a goal at the King Power Stadium since the restart, drawing blanks against Brighton, and Chelsea in the FA Cup. Heskey says the Foxes are missing their fans.
“It’s not easy to come back from not playing for three months and there are no fans to give you energy,” said Heskey, whose autobiography Even Heskey Scored is getting good reviews and has been nominated for awards.
“I always remember a 3-3 with Arsenal in 1997 when I was there. We got the draw in injury time and if the fans weren’t there, we’d have lost.
“Every time we got a corner, there was this huge roar that went up.
“It was as if we all felt something was going to happen – and it did.”