3 min read
22nd Dec 2022
James McPike admitted that Leicester had more in the tank once extra-time was forced to decide Wednesday evening’s FA Youth Cup tie.
The under-18s exited the competition at the third round stage following a 3-1 defeat in which the Foxes secured their progression with two goals in the additional period. And although his side gave it their all, McPike felt that the competitiveness and physicality of Leicester was enough to get them over the line in what was a tight encounter, particularly throughout the 90 minutes of normal time.
On the 120 minutes of action
“It was a hard-fought competitive game. I thought both teams early on were right at it and a bit scared to give up a bit of position so went quite direct early on and it seemed quite edgy. But the game settled down a little bit. It was a very hard-fought competitive game.”
On conceding so quickly after scoring
“It was great to go a goal ahead in a cagey game but a little lapse of concentration, jumping out when we could have stayed a bit more compacted and then not getting around on the opposite side just left us open.
“It’s that lapse in concentration and just being focused on, after scoring, being a little more cautious.”
On what was missing in the second half
“We had to be a lot more careful in our one versus ones. Sometimes we were too late to them and we ended up pulling shirts, dangling legs in and giving away free-kicks in unnecessary areas which kills your momentum.
“We could’ve been a bit calmer in transition on the second balls. When we did get the ball back and we tried to play we forced it and asked a bit too much of the front players rather than trying to be a bit calmer and find a pass.
“Ultimately that calmness in the transition but not to get away from the fact they were a very strong, physically fit team with one or two exceptional players.”
On what Leicester had that Wolves didn’t in extra-time
“They had extra in the tank, they had extra in their legs, they were real warriors in and out of possession. They were really competitive and with the one or two top players they had that really made the difference in the final third.”
On Voice’s red card
“Caden’s really disappointed because for large portions of the game, he played a really good game. But unfortunately, his foul is not acceptable and he’ll learn from that, he’s still young.
“It’ll be a hard pill to swallow but he’s not the reason the result went the way it did. It’ll be a real tough lesson for him to learn but one he’ll benefit from in the future. The rest of the boys are bitterly disappointed [with the result], they gave it everything they could and falling short, especially for the second years and their last opportunity to play in this tournament, probably hurts a lot for them.”
On the season so far
“We need to work harder, we need to focus more on our one versus one battles, with and without the ball.
“In the second half of the season we need to show some real grit, some real desire to want to be footballers. They need to show that they’re desperate to be football players and that’ll reflect in the work, training and games in the second half of the season.”
