Jamie Vardy called players-only meeting to revive Leicester City bid

Following back-to-back league defeats, Jamie Vardy has led an intervention to help clear things up between the Leicester squad and reassess their promotion chances.

Two weeks is a long time in football. Digging away from Plymouth in mid-April after a second successive defeat, the mood around Leicester City was dull to say the least.

Both games, the other against Millwall a few days earlier, had gone the same way: two lower table teams, fighting for their lives against the fear of relegation, sitting deep and looking to launch the counter-attack .

Leicester had no response. The possession was there, but the penetration was lacking. And on the rare occasions when they did give themselves a chance, it was duly missed. The frustration of the away fans was audible.

Fast forward a few games and things look very different. Leicester are back at the top of the Championship, having fought tooth and nail to secure three points against West Brom, before securing a 5-0 victory over Southampton.

The Foxes now find themselves on the verge of promotion. So what has changed?

The defeat against Plymouth was a real turning point. From the fans’ perspective, it was a crisis, and it didn’t seem like manager Enzo Maresca knew how to turn things around.

Step forward Jamie Vardy. The club’s iconic talisman of over a decade has stepped in to call a players-only meeting to resolve the team’s current issues, as Marc Albrighton exclusively revealed to talkSPORT.

“It was Vards who called the meeting,” he explains. “A lot more players spoke up than I thought. There was a lot of honesty.

“It was a big conversation about what this (promotion) meant. What it would mean for the club. Every player has a reason why they want to return to the Premier League.

When asked for details on what was discussed, Marc continued: “We sometimes had the impression that during the season, especially in the second half of the season, the guys did not seem to want to take certain risks (in possession).

“We have incredible players on the team. We have real talents, especially the wingers. Their strength is running towards players, passing them and putting balls into the box.

“So we told them to go ahead and do this. Don’t introduce yourself, make sure you express that freedom – I think they may have lost a bit of confidence over the course of the season, with the losses and all that, but they’ve been absolutely brilliant for us, so it was just a return to that.”

This advice worked emphatically, particularly for youngster Abdul Fatawu, who rose to the occasion, then against Southampton, recording an assist and a hat-trick to win the match ball and lead the celebrations with the supporters after the final whistle.

“He was a revelation for us,” smiles Albrighton. “He is also only 20 years old. I obviously watched him in the first half (against Southampton) and I went and spoke to him at half-time.

“I just told him to keep doing what you do, both offensively and defensively. Kyle Walker-Peters tried to advance, but Abdul followed every run, making tackles. This is to his credit.

It remains to be seen whether Leicester will be able to sign Fatawu this summer. It has been reported that there is an obligation to buy the winger, on loan from Sporting, if the club is promoted, but this could be complicated by the current embargo on player registration.

Albrighton, 34, and Vardy, 37, are two others whose futures are uncertain this summer, with both players out of contract. The pair have a great relationship on and off the pitch, and Albrighton says it will be a sad day when Vardy finally calls time on his Leicester career.

“I see it every morning,” he laughs. “I think the day when I don’t see him every morning will be quite a difficult adjustment because he’s such a character.

“He’s ideal for a locker room, because sometimes locker rooms need someone like him. It’s not that he doesn’t care about the football side of things, but he can take everything lightly, no matter what. happens.

“It creates conversation, and sometimes that can really help relieve the daily pressure.” He obviously has his own funny regimes, but he is a good friend of mine and whatever happens, the service he has given to this football club is second to none.

With his legacy at Leicester already well and truly cemented, it would be a fitting end to Vardy’s fairytale story if he turns out to be the one to spark Leicester’s renaissance and lead them back to the Premier League.

To see if Leicester return to the Premier League, tune in to QPR vs Leeds live on talkSPORT 2 at 8pm on April 26.