Foxes fighting for top 4 in 'every game'

LONDON • Brendan Rodgers knows his Leicester City have a golden chance to strengthen their claim for Champions League football when they host Crystal Palace today in the Premier League.

The Foxes are third on 59 points and with fifth-placed West Ham on 55 after their defeat by Chelsea on Saturday, that gap can be extended to a more comfortable seven with a victory over Palace.

Speaking after Friday's impressive 3-0 dismantling of West Bromwich Albion, Rodgers said his side have learnt from last season's experience - they lost three of their last four league games to fall out of the top four.

He said: "We finished where we deserved to finish last year. Nothing is guaranteed and with six games to go, we are fighting every game to see where it takes us.

"We want to arrive in the top four. Worst case is European football. That will be a sign of progress for this club."

Attacking midfielder James Maddison made a successful return to the starting XI against the Baggies and his impact was clear, as he linked up well with strikers Jamie Vardy and Kelechi Iheanacho.

Vardy opened the scoring to end his two-month goal drought and when the Eagles last visited Leicester in July last year, the veteran forward netted a brace in a 3-0 win.

Leicester needed a late equaliser from Harvey Barnes to snatch a point in a 1-1 draw when both sides met back in December.

Palace, whose last outing was a 4-1 home loss to Chelsea on April 11, have had two weeks' rest and while they are in mid-table and safe from relegation, Rodgers was aware of the threat posed by Roy Hodgson's visitors.

The Northern Irishman said: "It's going to be an equally difficult game. We have a short period to recover but hopefully we can put in a similar sort of performance (as against West Brom).

"Roy's teams are always very difficult to beat. They are very compact and tight and they have players that can hurt you."

Left-back Luke Thomas shared the same sentiment, telling Leicester's website: "The confidence is great. Obviously, getting to the FA Cup final is brilliant, but we've got games before that. We're focusing on the Premier League and the gaffer made that clear after the game in the FA Cup."