The latest Team News …

Yoane Wissa will be out for a few more weeks with an ankle injury. The others are closer and will be assessed before the game.

The confidence in the group …

We have a good squad with players who are confident and believe in themselves. I try to reinforce the message that if we hit the level we think we can hit, we have a good opportunity to play an even game against these Premier League sides. In any game there’s always a good opportunity. We’ve shown with good performances in every single game that we have something to add to the Premier League.

We are creating chances which are dangerous to our opponents but also it is about the fine margins that are part of the game. Hopefully, over the season, we can turn them into our favour.

We are pleased that we add something to the Premier League and we are constantly aware we need to perform at a very high level to keep adding. We are on a mission to do something in the league this year; let’s see how far this takes us.

Thomas on Leicester City …

Brendan Rodgers and his coaching staff have done a fantastic job the last couple of years. They have come fifth in the Premier League table, so close to the Champions League spots. They play entertaining football and have really developed a good side. They will come close to the top four again this season. We will need to be at our absolute best to get something out of the game. We believe that if we play with that intensity in pressing, counter-pressure and going forward we can create troubles for every team.

Thomas on Brendan Rodgers …

Brendan has had a very interesting career; he’s shown some fantastic results in almost every club he’s been at. I really like his Leicester side and their style of play. I think they play attractive, progressive, attacking football. It is not that he and his players have done anything wrong, it is just the margins that kept them out of fourth in the last couple of years. If you look at the stats, they should have been there the last two years. The development of Leicester City is very impressive.

Thomas on last weekend’s Chelsea defeat …

I don’t know a manager, coach, or player that doesn’t hate losing; I am one of them and the players also hate that. The next thing is, did we perform well? I know we performed well against Chelsea. The first 60 minutes they were a little bit more in control without them creating a lot. They got that goal, but we were definitely in the game. Then the last 30 we played with more bravery and with that intensity where we know we can trouble teams. We need to bring that confidence with us that we can really put them under pressure. It was the highest expected goals stats against Chelsea since Thomas Tuchel took over. It was quite crazy we could do that. It was one game and it’s a new game on Sunday. It’s a new history and we will need to perform again.

Thomas on Ivan Toney …

Ivan is a very good player; he arrives in good positions during the game and, as you have seen this season, he has that fantastic link-up play. He has two assists and could have had more. It is an ongoing process. In training we try and get him, and the other strikers, in the right position and then it’s about their relationship, finishing drills, video and his own determination to improve.

Thomas on the pressures of management …

I said after Chelsea that I wanted to congratulate Steve Bruce on his 1000th game. It is an incredible achievement for any manager to manage 1000 games. You can only do that if you are a good manager. There’s not one single manager passing that magic number that hasn’t had a fantastic career. It is so easy these days to criticize the manager. In modern times it is apparently part of the job that you need to be criticized a lot. Steve’s situation does make you think sometimes if it is worth it. I love working with people and I love working in football; I have been privileged in my career to work with good people but there are highs and lows.

It is a tough job so sometimes you do think if there are other things you need to do in your life. As a manager once said: ‘Football is the most important of all the non-important things in life’. Football is important and it means so much to so many people but there is so much else in life that is much more important. There is not one human being who doesn’t get hit by criticism; it is not possible. Then it is just how much or how little it affects you and how you deal with it. Of course, it affects me sometimes but I’m pretty sure I have my priorities right in terms of friends and family being the most important things in life. If I don’t want to do this, then I’m convinced I’ll do something else.

Thomas on whether an extra year in the Championship was a good thing …

We will never know but let’s say it was. I think as a club, and as a squad, we definitely learned something from the first year that we took into the second year. It gave us a better opportunity to develop our style, so they were hopefully even better prepared to go into the Premier League and play at the highest level. Hopefully we can continue to develop as a team and as a club.