Hard Work Pleases Ranieri

- Jamie Vardy scores two goals as Leicester City run out 2-1 winners 

- New manager impressed with the tempo his players have set in pre-season so far 

- He urges his players to focus on their opening Barclays Premier League fixture with Sunderland on 8 August 

Leicester City boss Claudio Ranieri praised his team’s stamina after they came through their first 90 minutes of pre-season unscathed and with a win on Tuesday night. 

An impressive second half double from Jamie Vardy did the damage against Burton Albion at the Pirelli Stadium, with the Foxes eventually running out 2-1 winners following a late goal for the hosts. 

But it was the fitness and application from the players that Ranieri was looking for, and despite some areas for improvement, it was a test they passed with flying colours. 

“The game was very good because it was against a team that were better than the last two we faced,” Ranieri told Foxes Player HD. “We worked very hard for 90 minutes. That is good for our stamina. 

“Tonight we made some good action but also we conceded some good chances, which isn’t good for us. 

“I was sad to concede a goal but that is football. We respect our opponent but we must concentrate until the end of the match. 

“I told the players that we had the chances to score more goals. The opponent had time to control the ball, run with the ball and shoot at goal. That’s too many seconds. We had to close him very quickly.” 

Vardy’s two goals were his second and third of the pre-season campaign so far, but Ranieri has been impressed with the squad as a whole too. 

He added: “I think it’s important for strikers to score goals. Vardy has scored, Kramarić has scored and slowly, slowly I think the other strikers will score as well. 

“I’m very impressed because the tempo is very high. Today we played 90 minutes, which is important and we must now focus for Sunderland now.”