RODGERS HAILS FOFANA’S ‘OUTSTANDING’ DEBUT
RODGERS HAILS FRENCH TEENAGER’S PERFORMANCE
WESLEY Fofana showcased his “huge potential” in an “outstanding” debut, Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers said.
The 19-year-old featured for the first time since his £32 million arrival from Saint-Etienne, the centre-back producing a commanding display at the King Power Stadium as City fell to a late defeat on Sunday night.
His performance was the biggest positive of the night and will come as a relief to both City staff and fans given the three-month lay-off Caglar Soyuncu faces.
“I thought he was outstanding and I think the supporters will have great joy in watching him,” said Rodgers in his assessment of Fofana’s debut.
“Whether he plays in a three or a two, he’s got huge potential.
“His anticipation is so good. For someone so young, he reads the game so well. You saw his jumping ability, he’s so aggressive.
“That’s one of the things that’s so important in the British game, if you’re a centre-half, you need to be dominant (in the air). I thought that side of his game was very good.
“He’s quick as you can see. He defends forward, which is the kind of profile I like, and he has composure on the ball. He’ll be a big player for our future and it’s disappointing for him not to get the result.
“His individual performance gives us great hope for the future.”
City didn’t keep the clean sheet that Fofana’s display deserved because of Ross Barkley’s late winner, the England international afforded too much space outside the box to arrow a strike into the bottom corner.
It condemned City to a second defeat of the season, and while Rodgers believes it was undeserved on the balance of play, he did admit that the goal was preventable.
“It was a very close game,” he said. “It looked like it was going to be 0-0.
“We just got stretched. We had them in a decent position on the side of the pitch, but we opened up in the middle.
“And if you do that against quality players they punish you. I didn’t think we deserved that.
“I thought we were the better team in the first half. We got through them really well and got into some good areas but just couldn’t quite have that little pass or finish of quality to get in. I thought we were in a good place.
“In the second half, it becomes a game of basketball, and that’s not the game we want. But still we get into good areas.
“To lose it in that way, so late, was disappointing. We just have to dust ourselves off and go again.
On the goal, he added: “For some reason, we pressed in the midfield, so as the ball came inside, we were a man down in the middle of the pitch.
“James (Maddison) presses the centre-half which was good because it forces them outside.
“We had them on the side of the pitch which is where you would want them. But when it came inside, our positioning wasn’t so good, and then it opens up. Those are small details and are something we can learn from.”