Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers insists Kelechi Iheanacho remains in his plans for next season despite a below par showing for the club this term.
Iheanacho has struggled to make an impact with the Foxes this season scoring twice in 35 matches across all competitions.
The Nigeria international missed a glorious chance to help the Foxes share the points with his former club, Manchester City on Monday.
Rodgers has, however, mapped out plans to help Iheanacho improve on his performances next season.
“Yes he is [part of my plans] ” Rodgers told Leicester Mercury.
“He’s just had his first season adapting to a new club. Then when you’re playing or challenging one of the best strikers in the league, it’s difficult.
“Kel will come back into pre-season, have a really good pre-season, gain more confidence, work hard and hopefully come out of that with a renewed motivation to show his qualities.”
Iheanacho has been limited to nine Premier League starts this season and he is behind Jamie Vardy and Shinji Okazaki in the pecking order.
The striker has not started a game since Rodgers took charge and has only made six substitute appearances.
The former Celtic boss stated that he is satisfied with the contribution of the former Manchester City player in the few minutes he has featured for the side.
“I’ve been impressed with him,” he continued.
“His appetite, his work, and then in games, where he has come on, whether it’s for five minutes or for 15 minutes, he’s impacted the game and done very well, and he nearly did again, it’s just unfortunate.
“He knows he should score, in big games you don’t get many chances and he has the quality, but it just didn’t happen for him.
“He’s a fantastic young player and hopefully he can show that over his time at Leicester.”
By Adeboye Amosu
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COMMENTS
I wonder why completesport don’t display news on Facebook any more? Must I have to visit the site all the time to read news?
There’s hope for Kelechi as long as his coach still believes in him, then it is left for him to show again what he can do and prove his critiques wrong. At least Ighalo has done it with the faith, the national team manager has on him. So it is your turn to shine again. Or he could go to Westham and reunite with Pelegrini.
GOOD NEWS:
Kelechi Iheanacho on West Ham radar as Pellegrini seeks reunion with Leicester forward
– Kelechi Iheanacho is reportedly on the radar of West Ham United ahead of next season
– West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini is in talks with the Foxes over a possible loan switch for Iheanacho this summer
– The 22-year-old Iheanacho has made just nine starts in 30 Premier League appearances so far.
Greater & best of you I pray Kelechi Iheanacho
Mark of a good coach
If the coach believes in him, He should prove it by playing him in the starting line up.
These coaches love to sweet tongue some players to be content on the bench.
Iheanacho ahould be wise and go somwhere else for regular football.
_Money talks_
Thanks Bomboy for your contribution above which I read with interest being a keen follower of Iheanacho’s progress (or lack of it as the case may be).
A more straightforward option is for Iheanacho to seek greener pastures elsewhere however money-related matters make this more complicated.
In fact, I think money-management is the sole reason Brendnan Rodgers continues to hitch his wagon to Iheanacho coming good.
The Under-17 World Cup winner, who was signed by Premier League club Leicester City on a five-year contract on 3 August 2017 for a reported £25 million fee, will not attract anything close to that amount at the moment based on his trajectory that has dipped since joining the one-season-wonder.
No right thinking division one club will be willing to trigger any release clause placed on the Leicester City flop that Iheanacho has now become.
_Loan Deal Option_
I don’t know of any Premier League club that will be willing contribute to Iheanacho’s high weekly wages based on his current reputation as misfit.
_Option_
Brendnan Rodgers has now given himself the personal mission and target to turn Iheanacho’s fortunes around.
_But why?_
The former Liverpool gaffer would not want to be seen as the coach who lost his employers money by allowing Iheanacho to leave the club with an amount significantly lower than what they bought him for.
Conversly, the former Celtic boss (who is now loathed by Celtic fans for leaving Scotland for England) would want his employers to see him as someone who can help them make the best out of their investment hence his mission to help revive Iheanacho’s dwindling career.
_ Will he succeed? _
I am not sure. I think the best thing that can happen to Iheanacho is to go to the Afcon, play well, attract interest from other clubs and then leave the one-time England champions.
However, on current form, Iheanacho belongs nowhere near the national team.
So, he will have to work hard leading up to next season and hope that whatever plans Rodgers have for him come to fruition.
Or else, both parties will have to come to the realisation that it will never work out for Iheanacho at the King Power and they would have to write Iheanacho off as a good deal gone bad.