Thailand trip has helped my team, says Puel

THE PLAYERS’ SPIRIT WILL MAKE UP FOR MISSED TRAINING SESSIONS

powered by LEICESTER City may not be entering tomorrow’s clash against Burnley in the best physical condition after flying to Thailand, but manager Claude Puel says his players will be better prepared mentally for making the 12,000-mile round trip.

City flew out to Bangkok via Dubai straight after last Saturday’s win at Cardiff, to attend the funeral of chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.

They travelled back on Monday night and after being given time to recover have only been able to man- age light training sessions in the build-up to the visit of the Clarets, which is City’s first home game since the tragedy.

However, Puel said it was important to the mental state of his players to have made the trip to Thailand to comfort the Srivaddhanaprabha family and he vowed the trip will give them more strength to cope with what will be an emotional occasion at the King Power Stadium on Saturday.

“It was a long journey but very important for us, for the players and staff to support Vichai’s family,” said Puel.

“It was a chance for us also to have togetherness and to honour our chairman. It was a long trip but it was very important for us and our chairman.

“We haven’t had a lot of training sessions.

“We tried to work a little on Wednesday, It was a light session after the journey.

“Thursday we have been training lightly again and again on Friday. It is not easy to prepare for this game but I think this togetherness between ourselves is a good feeling and it will give us fantastic energy and strength.

“I think we compensate with our spirit and attitude, and the support from our fans will be very important also.”

Puel praised his players for the way they handled their emotions at Cardiff last week, but tomorrow promises to be an even more emotional occasion and the Frenchman said the players must get the balance right between honouring the chairman during an afternoon containing a host of tributes, while remaining focused on the game.

“I think in the last game we found the right balance between emotion and our concentration and focus,” added Puel.

“It is the most important thing to manage the emotion around this game. We have to have the possibility to give a good response and honour our chairman.

“We have to find this right balance.

“We cannot make a lot of training sessions and consistency in good training sessions, but there is a good energy and spirit.

“This journey was important for us and this togetherness will show in our positive attitude on Saturday.”