BE OUR FERGIE, BRENDAN
Leicester hand Rodgers £8m-a-year deal to 2025
LEICESTER CITY have given boss Brendan Rodgers the power to mould the club in his own image in the hope he will become their answer to Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger. In a huge show of faith in Rodgers, targeted by Tottenham and Arsenal recently, Leicester have given him a new five-and-a-halfyear deal and will do the same for assistants Kolo Toure, Chris Davies and Glen Driscoll, who followed him to the King Power Stadium from Celtic in February. Rodgers will get a substantial pay rise, up to around £8million a year. He will earn more than £40m if he sees out his contract and the former Liverpool boss will be given the opportunity to put his stamp on the club from top to bottom.
Sportsmail also understands Rodgers will be backed in the transfer market in January and next summer, with a new central defender and another option in attack to complement Jamie Vardy top of his priorities. The 46-year-old has been given the chance to impose his preferred ‘counter-pressing’ style across all Leicester’s teams. The Foxes are second in the table and a win at
Aston Villa tomorrow would be an eighth league victory in a row. Rodgers’ relationship with the Leicester hierarchy — chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, chief executive Susan Whelan and director of football Jon Rudkin — are thought to have been key factors in his decision to stay. Leicester are optimistic important players will follow suit. James Maddison has opened talks over a new deal that would double his wages to about £100,000 a week, while Leicester may also look to improve Ben Chilwell’s contract for the second time in 14 months, with the England left back the subject of interest from Chelsea. Asked whether his move would be decisive for his players, Rodgers said: ‘Hopefully they’ll see how we’ve worked here and the ambition I have for the club. This is a club with big ambition. That’s why I’ve committed for such a long period, and they will hopefully feel that ambition and see the progress.’