Leicester boss explains why Cengiz Ünder isn’t playing
By Akash Roy
Brendan Rogers sheds some light on why Cengiz Ünder is not starting for Leicester City in their matches, and the boss also talks about future plans for the winger.
It’s that time of the year again where Europe’s top clubs face the surmounting crunch of fixture congestions. The Foxes enjoyed a very successful qualification for punching their ticket to the knockout phases of the UEFA Europa League. Coming to the Round of 32, the clubs are expected to update their squad this week and notify any changes for the Europa League registration. Within the roster, Leicester have made one change, Daniel Amartey has been included in place of Wes Morgan.
The Europa League resumes in two weeks where the Foxes are scheduled to face Slavia Prague twice; the first leg will be an away fixture played on the 18th of February and the second leg at home, on 25th February for Round of 32. The Foxes will need to win on the aggregate to march into the Round of 16.
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However, along with the Europa League, the FA Cup will have its fifth round of matches next week where LCFC will face their fellow Premier League side Graham Potter’s Brighton & Hove Albion. So in such times where a team is active in three premier competitions, it is very crucial to have a healthy squad depth for the manager Brendan Rogers. That is precisely where the future plans for players such as Cengiz Ünder come in.
Despite the many injuries at the club this season the Turkish international has not featured in the starting eleven much after his loan move from Roma at the start of this season. Those starts did not come in the Premier League but rather in the last five matches of European nights for the East Midlands side in the group stages of UEL. Cengiz has gained an appreciation for his performances and his special link up with Jamie Vardy and James Maddison in the few appearances he has made. It’s visible from his performances that he is hungry and he has got flair. But surely the 23-year-old expects more playing minutes if he is to stay at the club for the foreseeable future.
Recently, coach Brendan Rogers was asked about his plans regarding the Turkish International where he said:
"“For Cengo [Cengiz], it’s just adaption to the Premier League. He’s shown moments of quality for us, but it’s difficult for him because there are other players in his position that understand the Premier League. But he’s still a very important player for us and this second part of the season, I think we’ll see that. Having competition in the squad is really important for me and he adds that competition. I think he’s really enjoying his time.”Via Leicester Mercury"
So, it is quite clear that the 23-year-old has earned the manager’s trust even with his limited game time. Ünder is certainly expected to make a lot more appearances for the Foxes in the second half of the season. But make no mistakes about it, to earn a place in the squad the Roma loanee has to give his very best to compete for his place with the players who play in similar roles for the club.
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It is very true that adapting to the EPL is not easy, if you rush it out too much the player certainly feels overloaded with expectations and pressure. It’s very wise of the Leicester City manager to give the Turk starts in the UEL and make him settle by making him ready both mentally and tactically for the league in gradual progression.