Vardy targets hotshot prize and the top four

Brendan Rodgers is backing Jamie Vardy to win his first Golden Boot and secure Leicester City a return to the Champions League.

Vardy is the leading Premier League scorer ahead of tomorrow’s crucial encounter with Manchester United and, aged 33, in line to become the oldest winner of the award.

He is on 23 league goals, two

ahead of Southampton’s Danny Ings and three ahead of Arsenal’s Pierre-emerick Aubameyang.

Leicester need to either beat United, or draw and hope Chelsea lose at home to Wolves, to secure a top-four finish.

Rodgers has admitted that Vardy’s pursuit of the Golden Boot will give Leicester an extra incentive to finish off the job.

“We all want him to finish as the highest scorer, which would be a remarkable achievement considering his age and everything,” he said. “He’s up there as one of the top strikers in the world.

“There’s different types of striker and at this time you have to see Jamie Vardy as one of the leading strikers in world football.

“When we go into Europe next season, at whatever level that is, again he will be able to demonstrate that.

“He’s a world-class striker and, thankfully, next year he’ll have the chance to show that on the European stage.

“We would all hope and want that Jamie can fulfil that because it will be an incredible achievement by him. It would also cap a fantastic season for him.

“He’s very much a team player but individually it would be a wonderful accolade for him to achieve.”

Leicester have been in the top four since September, and are guaranteed a place in at least the Europa League.

United have gone 13 league games unbeaten, while Leicester have struggled for consistency since December, picking up 27 points from 22 matches. Finishing in the top four would boost Leicester’s spending power and enable them to lure higher-profile players.

Rodgers said: “The Champions League certainly helps with the financial injection, but also from a football perspective. We recognise the opportunity and we’ll give everything we can to achieve it.

“Champions League football brings the whole festival of football to your city, from a football perspective, it’s amazing.

“You get the chance to play and coach at that level against the best teams in Europe so it’s great [and] from the club’s perspective, financially it’s huge.

“Across the board in every aspect, it has such a huge effect.”