Dean Smith bizarrely claims it will be ‘an achievement’ if Leicester stay up ‘with the group of players we’ve got’ with the Foxes two points from safety – and says he is not thinking about his future beyond the end of the season
- Dean Smith has insisted it will be ‘an achievement’ if Leicester avoid relegation
- Foxes are two points from safety but have a game in hand on Everton and Leeds
- And boss Smith claims he is not thinking about next season, only the next game
Leicester boss Dean Smith has insisted it would be ‘an achievement’ if Leicester avoided relegation this season.
The Midlands side finished eighth in the Premier League last season, four points off the Europa Conference League places and six points off the Europa League places.
However, this season has been hugely disappointing, with Smith’s predecessor Brendan Rodgers sacked in April after a last-gasp loss against Crystal Palace.
The club signed defenders Wout Faes in the summer and Harry Souttar and Victor Kristiansen in January, yet their form has continued to nosedive.
And despite possessing players with the talent of James Maddison, Jamie Vardy, Harvey Barnes and Youri Tielemans, Smith has claimed he would be proud if the Foxes stayed up.
Dean Smith has insisted it would be an achievement if Leicester avoid relegation this season
The Foxes currently lie 19th in the Premier League table and are at serious risk of going down
His comments come despite Foxes having the talents of Harvey Barnes and James Maddison
He said: ‘It’ll be an achievement if we can stay up with the group of players that we’ve got and the position they were in.
‘And it would be one that we would be really pleased about afterwards.’
When asked if he was able to think beyond the end of this campaign, Smith added: ‘No, not at all. I mean, I can’t even think beyond Liverpool at the moment, so I’m just concentrating on that.’
Smith, 52, was speaking ahead of the club’s clash with Liverpool at the King Power stadium on Monday evening.
The former Aston Villa and Norwich manager has won one, drawn two and lost two of his five games in charge.