PUEL: SO PROUD OF MY PLAYERS

the city centre to the ground in a show of solidarity. Former Leicester bosses Claudio Ranieri, Craig Shakespeare and Nigel Pearson also showed their respect.

Puel (right) said: “It was a special day – a special match - our first at home after the dreadful accident. It was important to have a communion with our fans towards our chairman.

“After the game, it was pure emotion. The players and fans both made their tributes towards him.

It was a fantastic connection. To see the former managers come back too showed the man he was. He was close to his managers and players.

“Vichai was a nice man. He wanted to please people around him. He was generous with his feelings. He always had a smile.”

A large contingent of players flew to Thailand after last weekend’s game against Cardiff, returning in midweek following the official funeral.

Puel added: “We couldn’t train in good conditions this week. It was important to give our best. It was different [from Cardiff]. I’m proud of my players. They learnt a lot about themselves and found their maturity.”

Burnley boss Sean Dyche added: “It’s a rare feeling as a manager. You want to win, but if we had, it would have been incidental in the grand scheme of things. Today reminded me that the gloss, the glamour, the important thing is that the club is part of a community. Sometimes that gets lost in modern football.”