Ruud van Nistelrooy singled out one of his Leicester City stars and claimed he has the ‘whole package’.
The Foxes face Arsenal on Saturday in a must-win game as the Premier League relegation battle gets tougher every week.
The appointment of referee Sam Barrott has angered Leicester fans who are also planning on protesting outside the King Power Stadium before kick off.
There is some hope as Arsenal have an injury-ravaged squad to select from, which could provide a big advantage.
It’ll still be an uphill task for Leicester though and Van Nistelrooy will need all of his players on their A-game to get just a fifth league win of the season.
Wilfred Ndidi praised by Ruud van Nistelrooy for Leicester role
One player Leicester have missed more than anyone in recent times is Wilfred Ndidi.
Ndidi starred against Manchester United after almost two months out injured and is expected to be in contention to start on Saturday.
The Nigeria international is now one of the most experienced players having been at the Blues since 2017.
His previous experiences of the highs and lows will be vital for the end-of-season run-in and Van Nistelrooy was quick to praise his impact in last week’s defeat and what his return means for the team.
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He said: “It starts with the personality, which is excellent.
“Then the leadership, his playing capabilities and yes, his physicality brings an extra thing for the team.
“The whole package lifts the team.”
Leicester City are worse without Wilfred Ndidi and the stats prove it
The impact of Ndidi in the Leicester side has been admired from afar – but the stats this season show how much they rely on the 28-year-old.
So far this season, Ndidi has played 17 times in all competitions and in that time Leicester have won four times.
| Games won when Wilfred Ndidi plays for Leicester | Games won when Wilfred Ndidi doesn’t play for Leicester |
| 4 | 3 |
Without him, however, it’s a different story as the Foxes have only managed to win three games – with only one of them in the Premier League.
Although he isn’t a regular amongst the goals and assists, his work in the middle of the park is a springboard for the side to attack and brings the best out of Bilal El Khannouss and Boubakary Soumare.