- Leicester City won 3-1 on penalties at Stockport County after a 0-0 draw in normal time
- It's a result which sees the Foxes safely into the third round of the Carabao Cup
- Manager Brendan Rodgers says City lacked creativity in normal time
- But he was delighted for Daniel Iversen, who saved three penalties on his debut
It was a frustrating 90 minutes for City as the Sky Bet League 2 side looked to stifle their visitors at Edgeley Park, but Rodgers' men began to carve out more opportunities in the latter stages. They weren't able to break through the home side's resistance, however, as the tie went to a shootout.
Daniel Iversen performed brilliantly, making three penalty saves on his competitive debut for the Club, while substitute Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall netted the decisive spot-kick. Although Leicester achieved their objective by securing safe passage, the manager isolated aspects which could be better.
"We didn’t play well," the Northern Irishman told LCFC TV. "We didn’t have speed in our game, but we got minutes into players that haven’t played so much. In, probably, the last 20 to 25 minutes of the game, we were able to speed up our game in the final third and create some chances.
"Other than that, it was a good fitness game for players, and like I said, the objective was to get through and we were able to do that eventually. It's a period where we have one game a week so the starting XI have mostly been playing, but some players need to come in and play if you have any injuries.
"That will benefit those guys, coming away to the game this evening. It was a great atmosphere. I haven’t been here since the late ‘90s. The pitch was great and, as I said, it was good to get through."
Rodgers was pleased with the way an XI which included 10 changes from last week's outing adapted to a raucous home crowd in Stockport. He believes, though, that his side just lacked the creativity which was required to win the tie in normal time.
"I said before the game, the first thing you have to manage is the atmosphere," he added. "We’re a Premier League team coming to a League 2 team, it can always be a shock in these competitions. You have to manage the crowd and manage the game and keep your concentration.
"I think the players did that really well. Like I said, we just lacked that creativity once we entered the last 30 to 40 metres. It probably wasn't until the last 25 minutes when we started to get better combinations, get that creativity, and look like we were going to score."
The former Liverpool and Celtic manager, on the other hand, was thrilled to see Iversen excel in goal for the Foxes.
"Brilliant, I’m delighted for him," Rodgers said. "He’s come in, done very well over pre-season, after being out of the Club for a few years on loan. He’s come back now, at 25 years of age, and he’s more than capable. He’s a fantastic guy. He trains well every day and I have no qualms about putting him in.
"He makes saves, he’s good on crosses and you saw on the penalties, his anticipation to make three saves was great. Penalty situations present the chance to be the hero and he certainly was that for us. I’m delighted for him. He’s a terrific guy, he’s done a lot of work.
"He’s back in the Club, fighting to be the No.1. Danny Ward clearly is in there, but he’s a very, very capable No.2."
It's Chelsea away next up for City in the Premier League on Saturday (3pm BST kick-off) and Rodgers says preparations will now begin in earnest.
"They’re all tough," he continued. "It’s been a challenging start to this season but we’ll get in and recover. We’ll get some good work in over the next few days and keep smiling. We have to stay positive and look to play a good game on Saturday."