MX23RW : Monday, May 13 22:11:51| >> :60:1598:1598:

Brendan Rodgers hopes Leicester rule-breakers have learned their lesson

Brendan Rodgers hopes Leicester rule-breakers have learned their lesson
© Reuters
James Maddison, Perez and Choudhury are available to face Southampton.

Brendan Rodgers believes Leicester's tarnished trio can become heroes again after their coronavirus breach.

James Maddison, Ayoze Perez and Hamza Choudhury are available for Sunday's FA Cup semi-final showdown with Southampton.

They were dropped for last weekend's 3-2 defeat at West Ham as punishment for attending a party at Perez's house following the Foxes' Premier League defeat to Manchester City.

Leicester are aiming to reach the FA Cup final for the first time since 1969 and Rodgers believes the players can restore their damaged reputations on the pitch.

"That is what they are very determined to do," he said. "These guys have made a great contribution for us, we are also in the position we are because of them.

"They made a mistake and in football there will be a choice again, at some point in their careers, and hopefully they'll make a better choice.

"We always have to look forward and it's in the past. The best way they can do that as a player is by their actions on the field.

"It's a really exciting period and they come in and are available. They know for the rest of the season they have to have that level of focus and commitment to achieve what it is we want to.

"We dealt with it last week when they trained separately and they understood the consequences. We had a meeting at the beginning of the week and we accept their apologies. They were sincere and knew they'd made a mistake.

"The team is based on pride and behavioural expectations and they fell below that."

It is the Foxes' first FA Cup semi final in 39 years, after they beat Manchester United in the quarter-finals, and Rodgers underlined the importance of keeping calm.

"In these moments that ability to have that self control is very important," he said. "When it counts most is when you are under pressure.

"We want to get into the final and we can only do that with performing well. If you overthink it or get nervous it can immobilise you.

"You stay calm, give clarity to the team and then arrive and look to play your game. We can't control what Southampton bring but we can control what we do."

Caglar Soyuncu is available after returning from Turkey having tested positive for Covid-19 while on international duty.

Cengiz Under is back after a hamstring problem but Harvey Barnes (knee) and James Justin (knee) are out.

The game is also due to have 4,000 fans watching as a pilot event to trial the return of large crowds to UK venues amid the pandemic.

Rodgers added: "The players have done tremendously well to be so competitive (without fans). To have 4,000, it's a start of getting people back into stadiums and we'll look forward to seeing them there."

ID:443407: cacheID:443407:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4599:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola pictured on March 7, 2021
Read Next:
The big talking points ahead of the FA Cup semi-finals
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CLeicester CityLeicester463141189414897
3Leeds UnitedLeeds462791081433890
4Southampton462691187632487
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom4621121370472375
6Norwich CityNorwich4621101579641573
7Hull City461913146860870
8Middlesbrough46209177162969
9Coventry CityCoventry4617131670591164
10Preston North EndPreston46189195667-1163
11Bristol City461711185351262
12Cardiff CityCardiff46195225370-1762
13Millwall461611194555-1059
14Swansea CitySwansea461512195965-657
15Watford461317166161056
16Sunderland46168225254-256
17Stoke CityStoke461511204960-1156
18Queens Park RangersQPR461511204758-1156
19Blackburn RoversBlackburn461411216074-1453
20Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds46158234468-2453
21Plymouth ArgylePlymouth461312215970-1151
RBirmingham CityBirmingham461311225065-1550
RHuddersfield TownHuddersfield46918194877-2945
RRotherham UnitedRotherham46512293789-5227


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!