Leicester City of England attacker, Kelechi Iheanacho has gained lofty words from his coach, Brendan Rodgers and one of his colleagues, Youri Tielemans, as they both view his recent burst of form as confirmation of hard work being done by the player.
In the wake of Iheanacho’s first ever hat-trick in the English Premier League and second ever of his professional career, Rodgers and Tielemans are of a view that hard work, perseverance and patience are finally paying off for Iheanacho, megasportsarena.com reports.
Indeed, the stunning performance and goals from ‘Kelele’ last weekend proved that he is doing something extra in order to become twice as lethal in front of goal and rehash some of the venom that made him become most valuable player at UAE 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup.
With the feat also becoming the first time Iheanacho has scored in three straight matches for The Foxes, Rodgers declared ahead of his side’s English FA Cup clash with Manchester United that the star’s performance against Sheffield United last weekend was outstanding.
However, it is not just about skills and technical ability but also a matter of attitude, as the coach from Northern Ireland also praised Iheanacho for his humility, especially as he Super Eagles’ star opted to thanks his teammates rather than putting himself in the spotlight.
While attributed Iheanacho’s recent goals scoring form to determination and hunger for success, Rodgers also admitted that the former Columbus Crew of America and Manchester City of England lad was not at his best earlier in the season, but reckoned that the worst is now over fro him.
Rodgers told Leicestershire Live: “The humility he had to score a hat-trick and thank everyone else. It was authentic. He respects his life as a footballer. He appreciates the support he gets from everyone. He’s been very productive for us.
“As a person, he’s a great guy and plays with a smile on his face. He rarely misses a day of training. When he’s asked upon, he produces in the main. There have been some performances where he hasn’t been at his most confident.”
Iheanacho has netted ten goals in all competitions so far this season, equaling his best goals tally for a single season he first recorded in 2019/20, much to the admiration of Tielemans, who added that he was delighted seeing his teammate put himself in contention for Premier League Player of the Month.
Such are the prospects for Iheanacho, after racking up five goals in three matches this month, including his first hat-trick in the 5-0 hammering of Sheffield United last Sunday, and Tielemans believes his pal is in red-hot form at the moment because he has been working hard.
That has given glee to Tielemans, who has set up two of Iheanacho’s goals this season, both of which came against Brighton & Hove, with the Nigerian lad totaling six in the EPL, one in three FA Cup outings as well as three in seven UEFA Europa League encounters.
All of these fats have put Iheanacho on course for his best season so far in England and Tielemans confessed that he is happy to be part of the turnaround for the previously embattled star, who was axed from Nigeria’s bronze-winning squad at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations on account of poor playing time at Leicester.
Tielemans told Leicester’s official website: “Especially for Kelechi to score a hat-trick in the Premier League is really nice. He’s been working really hard lately and he’s been rewarded for his hard work.”
