Puel: We Showed Our Quality

- Leicester City beat Huddersfield Town 3-0 in the Premier League at King Power Stadium
- Second half goals from Riyad Mahrez, Islam Slimani and Marc Albrighton give the Foxes all three points
- Adrien Silva made his debut as a late substitute for Matty James
- Claude Puel praised the quality of his team as they impressed in the second half

In a team that saw three changes to the defeat against Liverpool, Puel’s men took some time to find their rhythm in a tough first 45 minutes but shortly after the break, Albrighton found Mahrez for a sensational volley at the far post to break the deadlock.

Mahrez then turned provider for an equally impressive lofted finish by Islam Slimani on the hour mark before Albrighton rounded off the scoring in stoppage time on an afternoon that also saw Adrien Silva make his debut from the bench.

“In the first half we played a team with a strong defensive unit who had quality on the pitch,” reflected Puel. “They tried to play behind our defenders, it was tough to play against them. We started well with quality on the pitch. perhaps the last 15 minutes we struggled to find the solutions but in the second half we had the same positive attitude and we showed our quality.

“We scored through Riyad [Mahrez] and after that we had more space and we scored more. We put in a good performance today. It was a fantastic game for Riyad. It was fresh legs today with quality and more intensity, with and without the ball.

“He showed his quality. I like all the play of the team with quality. To play just two days after our game at Liverpool, with this quality and intensity was good. It was important against this team because they try to play good football. It is a good win today.”

On Silva, who made his long awaited debut as a late replacement for the excellent Matty James to the delight of the King Power Stadium crowd, Puel added: “He made a lot of training sessions without the possibility to show his quality. It was harsh for him to train without the possibility to play.

“He kept a fantastic positive attitude all the time. Now it's a good reward to come in and to look forward. It's a good thing for us. He had to make more efforts than the other players to keep a good level of fitness. Now it is good for him to come on in the game and now to look forward. It is a good thing for us of course because he can bring a good feeling to the team, like Matty James after his injury. It is amazing.”