'There's So Much More To Come' – Albrighton's New Contract Delight
Signed from Aston Villa in 2014 on a free transfer, Albrighton has gone on to win the two biggest honours in the English game, also netting the Club's first-ever goal in the UEFA Champions League, while becoming a hugely popular figure among team-mates and supporters alike.
With Leicester now looking to build upon successive European qualifications and last year's historic FA Cup triumph, the 31-year-old winger can't wait to contribute further for Brendan Rodgers' men.
"I'm delighted, it’s obviously a club that's progressing every single year," he told LCFC TV at the Club's pre-season training camp in Surrey this week. "It's a fantastic a club, the people here, where the Club’s going, the direction that they’re going in, it's great to be a part of.
"It's a club that I've really settled into. I’ve got a good relationship with the fans. The people here are great. Whether it's the staff around the training ground, the stadium or the players, the management, coaching staff, I just really enjoy coming to work every day at the training ground.
"I like coming in and working hard and feeling like I've done something in that day and, to be doing it at the level that we are competing, is a dream for me.
"Obviously, I have always been the type of person and player that wants to establish himself at a club and stay there instead of flitting between different clubs and travelling to different places. I've settled in here so it's great and I'm really enjoying it."
Albrighton has been excited by Leicester's summer transfer business, too, and the general trajectory of the Club, especially after they moved into the world-class environment at LCFC Training Ground midway through the 2020/21 season.
"I think in all areas, there's just improvement," he added. "On the pitch, the players that we’re recruiting now are incredible players and they’re taking us in the right direction on the pitch. And then everything off the pitch... the training ground, the facilities that we've got now, they're some of the best in the world.
"So if we’re going to keep improving and keep heading in that way, there's no limit for this football club."
The former Villa midfielder also paid tribute to the qualities of his manager, Rodgers, who ended the Club's 137-year wait for the FA Cup last season. With the Northern Irishman's guidance, Albrighton believes the Foxes can achieve further success over the years to come.
"I've said to people since he's came in, he’s the best manager that I've worked for," he continued. "His attention to detail is absolutely incredible. I've never seen anything like it before. All the lads would say the same. Whether it's the coaching side, or the man management side, he’s spot on.
"It’s great to have him at the helm and I think, under him, we've already showed last year, we can go and win trophies and hopefully there's going to be more where that came from."
The emotions which were sparked by City's FA Cup success in May can now spur the side on to more, Albrighton believes, after witnessing firsthand the impact that the Club's 2016 Premier League title victory had on the squad five years ago.
"Everyone knows about the FA Cup, but I think with English players and the fans, it's just that cup that's so special in the English game," he explained. "It's a cup you dream of winning and we managed to go all the way and, to do it in the style we did, it’s absolutely fantastic and a day we'll never forget.
"With the Premier League win, the Champions League run, it's been a good time and a bit of a roller-coaster, but yes, it's right up there with that.
"You dream of winning trophies as a football player and when I first signed for Leicester, I don't think I could have ever imagined winning the Premier League and the FA Cup, but to do so, it's incredible. It's been brilliant.
"When you experience something like that, obviously we experienced the Premier League and that win, it gives you an extra drive to go forward and win more and achieve more. It will be the same this time around as well.
"We've got a different set of lads, a different squad that have gone on to win the FA Cup, and that will give them more hunger and drive to go and win more trophies. I think, with that extra drive and that extra hunger, that's something that we can certainly achieve.
"There's still so much more to come out of this squad. Obviously we’re, like I said earlier, adding bodies constantly, and they're just improving the squad, so I just think there's so much more to come and so much more progression and everybody's doing the right things to make that happen."