Leicester City boss Steve Cooper will be hoping all of his players return from the international break unscathed for their relegation six-pointer against Southampton.
Leicester City currently have 12 players away on international duty, and one of those is centre-back Jannik Vestergaard.
The towering Dane has only featured twice for the Foxes in the Premier League this term, last appearing in a 2-1 defeat to Fulham in August, with Vestergaard nursing an ankle injury.
The former Southampton star should return to Steve Cooper’s squad for the trip to Southampton this weekend, especially after starring for his nation during the break.
Vestergaard impressed for Denmark against Spain in a 1-0 defeat and the 32-year-old was looking to perform to a similar standard when they met Switzerland in the Nations League.
Jannik Vestergaard struggles for Denmark vs Switzerland
After performing admirably in the 1-0 defeat to Spain on Saturday, Vestergaard started in the centre of a back three alongside Rasmus Kristensen and Victor Nelsson.
The Foxes star played the full ninety minutes for Denmark, who were held to a 2-2 draw against Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League.
Whilst the veteran defender rolled back the years against the Spanish, he produced an unconvincing display on Tuesday night, with Danish outlet Ekstra Bladet handing him a 5/10 match rating and writing: “Denmark does not get enough of Vestergaard’s height and size on the offensive set pieces, because it is clear that he is dominant on the defensive ones.”
DR were also critical of his display, awarding him a 4/10 and claiming he looked physically ‘under pressure’ against the Swiss as he made a few ‘poor clearances’.
“Denmark’s best against Spain was once again positioned as the central part of a three-man defence, but not with the same advantage. Especially in the second half, Vestergaard seemed physically under pressure and made a few poor clearances.”
Finally, BT gave Vestergaard two out of six stars, citing that there were ‘big problems’ in the Denmark defence.
“He is the defensive lighthouse, but there was something wrong with the navigation in the Danish defence, which had quite big problems with the Swiss throughout the match. Won a couple of important headbutt duels, but there was turmoil around him.”
Jannik Vestergaard stats vs Switzerland
The above criticism of the giant Dane will do himself no favours as he aims to dislodge one of Wout Faes or Caleb Okoli from the centre of the Foxes’ back line.
That said, Vestegaard did produce some defensive metrics that showcased his no-nonsense approach to defending, including 10 clearances.
| Jannik Vestergaard stats vs Switzerland |
| 88 minutes played |
| 10 clearances |
| 1 ground duel won |
| 5 aerial duels won |
| 34/40 accurate passes (85%) |
| 58 touches |
| 2 accurate long balls |
With Vestergaard not playing a single minute of Premier League football since August, Cooper will be pleased to see him come through these international games without suffering an injury as the Foxes prepare for the trip to St Mary’s this weekend.