Rodgers: Champions League is a bonus… we hit our Euro goal
Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers has dismissed any suggestions that missing out on the Champions League would be a failure.
The Foxes host Manchester United in today’s Premier League finale, knowing victory would book a spot at European football’s top table.
They are currently fifth, a point behind United and Chelsea, in the race for the top four, having already earned a Europa League place for next season.
Shock champions four years ago, City have again threatened to upset the established order, and Rodgers insisted that, wherever they finish, his side have achieved most of their targets this term.
He said: “The six targets we had – two of those was to get to domestic finals, one was semi-final, one was quarter-final – so we just fell short in those.
“But we met all of the other performance goals, in terms of reaching European football and improving our goalscoring.
“The other goals we have achieved, and now we’ve a barrier-breaking goal to get into the Champions League.
“It wasn’t really something we spoke about at the beginning of the season because, naturally, where the club had been these last few seasons, we wanted to try step-by-step to arrive there.”
But Rodgers insisted he has no regrets with the way the season has gone, despite the Foxes losing the 14-point lead they held over United in January.
“No. I’ve always said that boat has sailed,” he said.
“The league is over 38 games, and people were having us in the Champions League after 20 games. You have to go right the way to the end.
“There will be disappointment if we don’t make it, but that would whet the appetite for next season.
“We were in a good position but you’ve got to sustain it. It also shows you the big improvements this team still has to make.”
The Foxes are without James Maddison and Ben Chilwell while Caglar Soyuncu is banned.
They have won two of their eight league games since returning from lockdown, with United unbeaten in their last 13 Premier League outings.
Old Trafford captain Harry Maguire returns to the King Power Stadium for the first time since last summer’s big-money switch from Leicester.
His current boss, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, is determined to get the job done in style as his third-placed side will seal Champions League qualification if they avoid defeat.
“We’ve given ourselves a good chance of being in the Champions League next year, but we can’t go into a game thinking about what the outcome can be,” the United boss said.
“We’ve just got to go and perform and perform at a high enough level and standard so we can get a result.
“We want to go there and dominate the game. We wanted to get this position to be able to go to Leicester and having to beat them and we’re not going to change our approach.
“We want to go there and try to win the game.”
Phil Jones and Axel Tuanzebe are the only definite absentees for United, with Solskjaer vowing to give Luke Shaw and Eric Bailly as much time as they can to prove their fitness.