- Leicester City boss Marti Cifuentes has insisted that he and his squad understand how big three points against Coventry City would be for supporters on Saturday lunchtime.
City welcome their M69 rivals to the King Power Stadium this weekend attempting to make it 13 points out of a possible 18. The game against Coventry is the Foxes’ toughest fixture on paper so far this season after a relatively kind start.
Last time, Leicester came from behind to beat the Sky Blues in Enzo Maresca’s first game in charge. Two late goals from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall handed the Foxes faithful the bragging rights – before Coventry ran-out 3-1 winners at the CBS Arena.
In his pre-match press conference, Cifuentes was asked about his enjoyment of local derbies and how his players will approach such an occasion. “Players are human beings – and they will feel the atmosphere at the same time as everyone else,” he said.
“The most important thing for us is that we play with personality. We have some things that we want to improve every week and we must definitely improve in the coming weeks.”
He added: “The fact it’s a derby creates an extra good feeling if you manage to get those three points afterwards, there is no doubt about it. I do believe that the emotions around the game are not an exception when it’s a derby.
“I have learned that in English football, emotions are very important and have a big influence on the development of the game. One of the main things for me compared to other leagues is in England, you can be in the 90th minute, 2-0, and the game is still not over. So you really need to be aware that every small detail can change the mood in the stands and that can influence the game.
“I want my team to play with personality. It doesn’t matter what the result is, we will have the same approach to the game and sometimes it’s as basic as putting the ball on the ground and trying to play quick, if we lose the ball, regain it as quick as possible. I want my team to have the personality to do it no matter what happens, but we’re aware that Saturday, if we manage to get the three points, it’ll be a very good feeling for our fans and ourselves.”
Cifuentes also credited the fans for their support and help in the first five games of the season. The Spaniard has previously referred to the relationship between the fan-base and players being vital in any success this campaign.
“I’m extremely happy with the way the fans have been helping us,” Cifuentes explained. “I’ve been saying that in games away, last week against Oxford, they were really helping and supporting us in a difficult scenario.
“I think they could see that, despite being one man down in the second-half, we really tried our best to try to win the game and we weren’t just trying to park the bus and expect something to happen but the opposite.