April 27 (Reuters) - Leicester City's Kelechi Iheanacho drew
praise from manager Brendan Rodgers after his superb display in
Monday's 2-1 Premier League win over Crystal Palace.
The 24-year-old set up Leicester's equaliser for Timothy
Castagne, then smashed home an 80th-minute winner to complete
the turnaround at King Power Stadium. Rodgers started Iheanacho and Jamie Vardy together only
eight times last season but injuries have forced him to opt for
a strike pairing in the last 10 games.
And Iheanacho has responded, scoring 12 goals from the last
nine games, and Rodgers described his form as "incredible".
"The top priority for me as a coach is helping players to
develop," Rodgers told the BBC.
"It's been difficult for 'Kele' because of the style we
normally played which was one striker - Vardy.
"We had to change it with injuries, he's come in and been
exceptional. Not just his goals, he's so happy to work hard for
the team and his quality is phenomenal."
Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel said Iheanacho had
all the qualities to be a top striker.
"He's so good at the particular one where he shifts it and
then puts it through the defender's legs and wrong-foots the
goalkeeper," Schmeichel told Sky Sports.
"He's a nightmare in training."
Vardy, who has 15 goals overall this season, has been
Leicester's top-scorer in the last five campaigns but faces
stiff competition this time from Iheanacho (17).
"As a team we work for each other, it doesn't matter who
scores," Iheanacho told the BBC. "There's so much to improve in
games so I'll keep going, doing my best."