Back To Business For Ricardo
- Leicester City travel to face Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Sunday (2pm kick-off)
- Ricardo Pereira spoke to LCFC TV ahead of the clash at Molineux Stadium
- The Portugal full-back made his first league start of 2020/21 away at Fulham in midweek
- After helping the Foxes to victory at Craven Cottage, he hopes to be able to play his part for the remainder of the season
A 2-0 victory over Fulham on Wednesday night kept the Foxes third in the Premier League standings after 22 games, continuing a fine away record which has included 11 wins on the road so far this term.
Back after a lengthy injury lay off which had prevented the Portugal international making a Premier League start since March 2020, Ricardo says he is now ready to kick on during the remainder of the season, ahead of another away fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday (2pm kick-off).
"It's very good to be back and I just want to enjoy it and play," Ricardo told LCFC TV. "It makes a huge difference being in or out [of the squad] but it's very good when you are out and you see the team playing well and having good results.
"It was even more difficult for me when you are out and the team are struggling or not having good results. You cannot give your best to help the team and, of course, it's better when the team wins.
"And now coming back with the team in a good moment, having a great season for now, it's even better to help and give my support and my everything."
The full-back almost marked his first league start of the campaign with a goal at Craven Cottage, only for the offside flag to deny him. Opposite full-back James Justin did manage to get his name on the scoresheet, however, finishing off a 26-pass move.
Meanwhile, as a defender, the clean sheet also pleased Ricardo as the Foxes got back on track following Sunday's home defeat by Leeds United.
Every Angle: Fantastic Team Goal vs. Fulham Finished By Justin
A 26-pass move ending with a goal for James Justin - enjoy!
"It was a shame, I think they could allow it," the 27-year-old joked, referencing the disallowed goal. "'After 10 or 11 months, okay you can score no problem', I think that would be nice!
"It was a good performance, especially with the team winning, not conceding [and getting] three more points.
"It was very good after a bad result, especially at home, it's important to bounce back and get a solid win, a big win, 2-0, three points to get on track. It's very important to go on a run again with some good results.
"I remember thinking in the game that we kept the ball for a long time when we switched side to side and then it's a nice goal with James [Maddison] finding JJ (James Justin).
"JJ appeared at the right moment with a cool head to take a little step and then score a nice goal. He's playing very well.
"I think he progressed a lot last season but I think it's very normal when you arrive to a new team with new team-mates, you need to play, you need to have games to know your team-mates, for them to know you and I think he's looking better each game."
Although City's next opponents find themselves 14th in the table as things stand, Ricardo knows that they cannot be taken lightly and that Leicester need to be wary of their quality in attacking areas.
"We know they have a good team, good players," he added, on Wolves. "They can play in several shapes and they have several trends to their game. It's always a difficult game even if they aren't playing as good as last season, for example, but they are still a strong team and it will be a difficult game for sure.
"We'll need the whole team to not give them space or the opportunity to play well because if you give them space it will be difficult for us. As a team, we have to play well, we will have to keep the ball, don't give them chances, and we have to be at our best to win."
All times GMT.