Barradell: Fulham Will Be A Good Test
- The Leicester City Under-18s face Fulham this Saturday afternoon in the U18 Premier League
- The fixture at LCFC Training Ground kicks off at 12pm
- City's youngsters were beaten 4-1 by Leeds United last time out
- It's important that we're more structured in our defensive abilities, says Adam Barradell
The young Foxes' season continues on Saturday afternoon, welcoming the Cottagers to LCFC Training Ground for a midday kick-off. A win against the fourth-placed side could see them leapfrog their counterparts and Adam Barradell believes the side are ready for the challenge.
"It's been a really good couple of weeks, and a decent break since we played Leeds in the Premier League Cup," the coach stated. "It's been a great opportunity to come together as two groups, as the Under-18s and Under-21s.
"We've been doing work as one unit and that gives the lads a great opportunity to train with some older players, and be seen by the Under-21s coaches, so it's been great getting that exposure.
"It's also allowed us to get a few players back fit, as we've had a few injuries, so it's good to have these players back and with us for the Fulham game.
"It's important that we be a little bit more compact and structured in terms of conceding goals. A few goals have come from individual errors so we're trying to eradicate that and we've done some good work around defending.
"It's been disappointing that we've conceded that amount of goals in the last two games, where that wasn't happening in the first couple. As I said, personnel has changed but it's our job as staff and players to go into games and change that."
Discussing this weekend's opponents, City's coach explained how he hopes that facing an attacking outfit provides a good opportunity to showcase their true defensive capabilities.
Always focusing on the players' development, Barradell would like to see three points on the board, which will not only help with the league standings, but boost the squad's confidence as well.
He added: "Fulham are always a good test and Academy in terms of producing players and how they play. It'll be a good challenge, and they'll look to play forward and to their strengths.
"It probably suits us as a good game to come because it allows us to make sure, defensively, we're right on our game. It'll be a good test and one we're looking forward to.
"Like I've always said, we want performances and we want to win games. If we get that Saturday, and come out with a win, that'll be great and should see us move up the league.
"It's been a decent start for us, only losing once in the league and we've had some good performances and results. The only disappointing one was Brighton, which wasn't at the level that we expect.
"Hopefully Saturday we can get back to that, and if that provides us with a win, then it's even better."
All times BST.