Thomas Could Return For PSV Tie, Says Rodgers

- Leicester City host PSV in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League
- The 8pm BST kick-off on Thursday is the Club's second last-eight tie in European football
- Youngster Luke Thomas could play a role for the Foxes, says manager Brendan Rodgers
- Jamie Vardy is not available for selection as he returns from a knee injury

The Foxes full-back played the full 90 minutes for England's Under-21s in a 4-1 win over Andorra during the most recent international break, although the 20-year-old missed a later clash with Albania. He also was absent during the 1-1 draw at Manchester United for Leicester last Saturday evening.

PSV are the visitors on Thursday in the quarter-finals of the Europa Conference League. The Dutch giants are second in the Eredivisie standings in their homeland and have played across the UEFA Champions League qualification phase and the UEFA Europa League's group stage this term.

Thomas could be back for City against Roger Schmidt's side, but it will be too soon for Jamie Vardy, who has been absent since a 1-0 win over Leeds United on 5 March with a knee complaint. Rodgers says work continues at LCFC Training Ground with the Club's medical and sports science teams.

"Luke will be back in the squad," the 49-year-old said. "[Vardy] is not [available]. It's hard to put a timeline on it. He’s still feeling pain in the knee. He’s been out on the pitch, he’s running, but striking the ball is an issue so we’ve got to try and get to the bottom of that.

"I just had a quick chat with Jamie. He’d been outside and running in straight lines. It’s just when he’s striking the ball, there’s a little bit of pain. I’ll have to speak to the medical team but it doesn’t sound like he’s too close to be being back."

With the likes of James Justin, Timothy Castagne, Wesley Fofana and Jonny Evans returning from injury over recent weeks, Rodgers is optimistic that Leicester can conclude their season in a positive fashion.

"We’re returning to somewhere near the level," he explained. "We’re still not at that yet, but it’s great to have players back. That allows us to play the game we want to play. I was pleased with our aggression the other day (vs. Man Utd), you have to have that physicality in the game, and that’s returning.

"That increases the level and the tempo of our football. The form has been getting better, but more importantly the football."