City formation is intended to surprise Villa

LEICESTER City’s veteran stars may believe they’re in the last chance saloon when they take to the pitch at Villa Park tonight.

City face Aston Villa in the second leg of the League Cup semi-final aiming to reach their first final since lifting the trophy in 2000.

For the likes of Kasper Schmeichel and Jamie Vardy, a first Wembley final is within touching distance, and manager Brendan Rodgers thinks the two 33-year-olds will be desperate to grasp what they may feel is their last opportunity to play in a showpiece occasion.

“We’ve got some senior players who have never played in a cup final before,” said Rodgers.

“Players’ careers are short, so if they can get to finals and experience that, and of course for supporters, it’s a brilliant day for them.

“I think the older you get, the more you think about it and the opportunities may become less for you. You’re aware of that, the older you get.

“Sometimes, if you’re young, 21, 22, and you’re in semi-finals or finals, you think: ‘Okay, it might come next year,’ but it might not, so it’s grasping the opportunities when they do come.”

Certainly, Rodgers is not planning for this to be the only semi-final appearance of his tenure at the King Power Stadium.

“I said it when I came here, we’re here to be competitive in every competition we play in,” the manager added. “That’s our idea.

“A final is something tangible to show for how well the players have worked, but we don’t want to go down the route that it’s a chance of a lifetime because then you may believe that you don’t have an opportunity again.

“For us, we’re building something here to sustain success.

“We’ll do everything to get to the final. If it doesn’t work out that way, a great lesson is learned and then can you be better going forward.

“There are opportunities you want to take and we’ll be fighting to get to the final.”

Then, it’s about getting to lift the silverware, something that would be a huge boost to the squad’s mentality.

“If you put your hands on a trophy, it’s a different feeling altogether,” Rodgers said.

“It’s something that makes you want to do it again and what it takes to do it. Once you’ve done that, then it really gives you the ambition to want to keep doing it.

“As a young player, it really stokes you up for the remainder of your career.”

BRENDAN Rodgers will field a Leicester City team that keeps Aston Villa guessing in tonight’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg, writes Jordan Blackwell.

Rodgers has switched formations for both of the previous two games against Villa, dropping his usual 4-1-4-1 system for the league game at Villa Park, when a diamond midfield earned a 4-1 win, and for the first leg of the semi-final, when a back three could only muster a 1-1 draw.

Rodgers said the idea is to pick 11 players who are versatile enough to give Villa and their manager, Dean Smith, food for thought.

“Each team we look at, we look at the strengths of us,” Rodgers said. “If a team plays with a back three, we need to make sure we have enough press on the game.

“It’s something the players are used to, but if you can tweak the system… That’s the beauty, if you can look at our players and not be sure what formation we’re going to play.

“That can be a surprise for teams, so that’s why we’re a difficult team to prepare to play against.”

City outshot Villa 21 to three in the first leg, with Smith’s side sitting deep.

Rodgers expects it will be a different game at Villa Park, where his team has experience of winning

“There’s always a pressure in your home game to go and impose your style,” said Rodgers. “I think Dean mentioned after the game that his team defended very well, but he needed more from them with the ball.

“We would anticipate them wanting to come out and play that bit more and to dictate a bit more of the game.

“For us, we play the same way virtually the whole season. If we can play as well as we did in the first leg, but take our chances, we will have a great opportunity to get to a final.”