‘Another Big Game’ – Okoli Speaks Ahead Of Man Utd Clash
- Leicester City visit Old Trafford to face Manchester United on Sunday
- Caleb Okoli looked ahead to the Premier League fixture, a 2pm kick-off
- The Italian defender assessed the previous meeting with Man Utd
- He also outlined how he is settling into life at Leicester
The Foxes’ quest for Premier League points continues at Old Trafford on Sunday (2pm kick-off), less than two weeks after the pair met in the Carabao Cup Fourth Round.
Although it was the Red Devils, under the temporary stewardship of Ruud van Nistelrooy, who emerged victorious in that encounter, Okoli, who started the 5-2 defeat in Manchester, believes that City can learn a lot from how the cup game panned out.
“It will be another big game because it was my first time in the Carabao Cup and now we’re going back there, we’re going to fight for another objective and result,” the Italian defender said earlier this week.
“The result of the last game in Manchester will of course help us to improve and be better for the next game. We will be more prepared for the next game, for sure. Going up against them after a week will help us to know how they are playing and their style of play better.
“We see they have great players and they are a very attacking team with good wingers and attacking players. From that game, I think we know that we have to keep alert in our defending and then we have to keep doing our work and [focus on] our playing style. Hopefully, we can go and get a result.”
Leicester’s last league outing saw Jordan Ayew net an injury-time leveller to claim a point at Portman Road, denying Ipswich Town their first victory of the season while moving Steve Cooper’s men onto 10 points from their opening 10 games.
Scoring late goals has become a running theme in recent weeks, and while it shows the character within the dressing room and a never-say-die attitude, it is not a routine that Okoli is keen to repeat on a regular basis.
“Ipswich was a great game; we think we played a good game,” the 23-year-old expressed. “We tried our things that we prepared in the training. We conceded the first goal and then we were good to make it back with Jordan’s goal at the end.
“We are going through a lot of games with late goals. You can think it’s a good thing because it’s our mentality to never give up, because Foxes never quit at Leicester, so it’s a good mentality. It’s one of the main characteristics of our team, it’s part of us.
“From the beginning of the season, we are trying to work this in our mind. But it’s something that we also need to work on because we need to try and close the game, not concede and win the game before the end.
“I don’t know why it is happening, but maybe we have less things to think about, so we just go for the game. We need to be more aggressive by having the first shot, winning the first contest and winning the second balls. Those are the main things that will help us to attack the game. We’ll keep working on it and try to improve by starting our games better.”
With the likes of Wout Faes, Jannik Vestergaard and Conor Coady to play alongside, the young Italian is keen to take on board what he can learn from his fellow centre-backs at the Club as he continues to adjust during his first season in England.
The former Atalanta youngster added: “The competition here is very high and of course every player wants to play, but we have a lot of good defenders. I think this is a good thing because it helps to improve us day by day.
“They have a lot of experience and they have played a lot of games in the Premier League. I try to learn from the good things that they have and try and do it better. I’m always trying to do better.
“I think the Premier League is a wonderful league and the players are the best in the world. For me to compete against them is a very big challenge, with the intensity and the quickness of the transition of the attacking players. Playing in the Premier League is the best thing for me.”
All times GMT.