Leicester City secured a dramatic 4-3 victory over Stockport County as new signing Emil Riis scored twice following his return from injury. The striker urged the club’s young squad to embrace the dark arts of football to guarantee promotion.
The 28-year-old forward showed his quality in front of goal after overcoming a difficult pre-season injury spell. Detailing his first finish, Riis explained: “I saw Louis Page running with the ball, and the gaffer keeps saying ‘be in front of the goal, be in there. He tried to pass it to me; it came to me in different ways, but it was bouncing, and the keeper came out, so I just thought, let me chip it.” A second clever finish followed as the striker found space inside the box. Reflecting on his match-winning contribution, he said: “It’s been a while since I scored a goal. To finally get that again and help the team that way – that’s absolutely why I came here, to score goals. So, to help the team that way, yeah, I’m very proud.”
Leicester had to dig deep in the closing stages to defend their narrow lead against a physical opponent. Evaluating the team’s grit under pressure, Riis stated: “I’m happy with the win, and I’m happy with how we played a lot in the game. Even in the end, I think we fought well. They came in the box and had some chances, but we dug deep and fought as a team, and that’s what we needed last week, and I think we showed that today.”
Winning ugly is now the mandate for Leicester’s academy talents adapting to senior football. Demanding a ruthless edge from his teammates, Riis declared: “We needed to fight more as a team, win second balls, and do the dirty part of football as well. We can play beautiful football, but we also need to be a horrible team to play against. So that’s what we were talking about, and I think we showed that at times today, definitely.” The Foxes must now build on this gritty performance during training to sustain their momentum in the league.
