The big story is that Nigeria and Leicester United striker Kelechi Iheanacho is back on the beat after a lull in performance that kept him on the bench for months both for club and country.
The former Nigeria U-17 top scorer bounced back in December and has been directly involved in six goals in his last seven Premier League appearances for the Foxes bagging three goals and 3 assists Leicester united
In an interview he granted LCFC TV, he attributed his new found form to his upbeat attitude even when he was going through a difficult patch in his career.
Iheanacho was shut out of the Nigeria national team at this lowest point of his career.
He said: “It’s a good group, working together in training, so there wasn’t much difference with who played today and the players who are starting, so we are really good group and a good family.
“We’ve been working really hard in training. I think the whole squad, everyone that is playing, and us that are not getting playing time, so everyone is really together as a family.
“It’s a good group, working together in training, so there wasn’t much difference with who played today and the players who are starting, so we are a really good group and a good family.
“I’ve been working hard in training and it showed in the [game], so we’re happy.”
Iheanacho said he only needed little opportunity to prove himself. And the opportunity came when he was introduced by Brendan Rodgers on December 1st in the EPL match against Everton.
The Toffees had taken a lead in the 23rd minute through Richarlison de Andrade. Leicester weren’t creating a great deal and didn’t look at their best. At least this was the case until Rodgers tried to change things up, bringing in a player who hadn’t played in the Premier League so far this season; Iheanacho.
Immediately, there was a change in the tempo of the game, and Iheanacho was at the centre of it. He was businesslike and constantly trying to link up play. And only six minutes after he came on, he tasted the first fruits of his labour, gliding a ball across the goal for Jamie Vardy to comfortably slot in. 1-1.
The game went on; a cagey affair but Leicester the better looking of the sides, creating more with the change of shape that was influenced with the Iheanacho substitution.
In the fourth minute of added time: Ricardo Pereira tackles, laying it on to Youri Tielemans, who turns around, quickly bringing the ball forward, then sending a through-ball back to Ricardo who picked up the pace and played a brilliant ball though to Iheanacho on the edge of the box. A fast exchange from right to left freed and he sent the ball flying to the far corner. It was a great comeback for Leicester and Iheanacho noted that fans have given him a nickname; Kelechi ‘game-changer’ Iheanacho.
Over the course of the month, Iheanacho would go on to keep this excellent form. He bagged another goal and an assist in what was a brilliant 4-1 victory over Aston Villa. And with Vardy being out, Kelechi also led the line and scored against West Ham United.
Iheanacho’s headed finish in London was his fifth and he underlined the importance of remaining sharp and delivering in training.
“It’s always a good feeling to get a goal in the team. So, as a striker, you always want to get a goal and I’m not playing too much, so you have to keep your mentality up there, so you need to keep going.
“Whenever you get a chance, you take it, so I just need to keep my head up, keeping working hard every day, so if I get my chance, I’ll take it. I’ll keep going as a professional, so I just have to keep going,
“On a personal level, I’m excited, scoring again and assisting Jamie, so I just need to keep going and keep the level up, working hard in training to make sure I keep my head up,” he added.
“It’s very good to be a part of this great squad so I’m happy to be part of it and going forward we have fantastic players, great quality and talented players, so I’m happy to be part of it.
“Everyone is buzzing, everyone is happy. It’s a fantastic record and [we have] a great manager, great staff [and a] good group of players. I’m happy to be part of it. I feel we can win the next game and we’ll keep going and get more records,” he added.
Iheanacho is now one of the favourite players in the team with fans having great things to say about him.
Zakariya Connary penned the December edition of Fan’s View for LCFC.com, providing a supporters’ perspective on the form of striker Iheanacho
“When I look back at the month of December for Leicester City, one man stands above all others for me. That man is the excellent Kelechi Iheanacho. He has scored and assisted twice over his last two Premier League outings for the Foxes, which included a last-minute winner against Everton and City’s second goal at Villa Park after Jamie Vardy’s first of two strikes, while defender Jonny Evans also registered his first strike of the 2019/20 season. He’s the game-changer.” *Adapted from lcfc.com
