Ndidi: How Rodgers improved my game

by Staff Reporter

Wednesday May 27, 2020. 09:05

Nigeria international Wilfried Ndidi feels that playing under Brendan Rodgers has improved his quality.

The 23-year-old player is considered to be one of the best defensive midfielders in the English Premier League (EPL).

Ndidi is enjoying playing under former Liverpool FC manager Rodgers at Leicester City where he is a key player.

“Playing under [Brendan] Rodgers has changed my game so much after from the fact that I moved from an attacking team to a possession team,” Ndidi told Out of Home Podcast.

“When he [Rodgers] came, he was trying to make us understand that he will always be there for us. He makes time to meet the players individually and tries to make us understand that there is space in the sky for us to improve.

“Since he came, I won’t lie to you I have improved as a player because I now understand simple things I never knew,” he continued.

“No disrespect to other mangers, Brendan took his time to explain things like understanding space, understanding the game, where you can actually be and how you can actually improve on yourself and your quality.”

When asked to compare Rodgers’ style of management to others, Ndidi said: “When I first came to Leicester, it was business. That is still there but you need to enjoy and feel it also.

“My training style and that of so many players have improved. He made us understand that whatever we did during training is what we’ll do during games – there is no magic. You can’t be lazy in training and expect to be a superman during games.

“It all begins from the first whistle during warm-ups. During our training, you just have to be there. It’s not an academy where everybody will come and pamper you,” he added.

“One thing he has done also is encouraging the whole team and letting us know that there is no one who is irreplaceable. That is just his philosophy.”