Ndidi: happy to reunite with Leicester City teammates after coronavirus lockdown

Ndidi: happy to reunite with Leicester City teammates after coronavirus lockdown

After spending over two months at his home, the Nigeria midfielder joined his teammates at the Belvoir Drive training complex this past week
LEICESTER City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi has expressed his joy after reuniting with his teammates at the club training facility.

For over two months, Premier League players including Ndidi were restricted to indoor training in their homes during the lockdown imposed by the UK government to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

The English top-flight authorities announced that the 2019-20 season will restart on June 17 during the week, while clubs have been granted permission to begin contact training after social distancing practices in the last two weeks.

The combative midfielder, who welcomed a baby girl with his spouse earlier this month, said he is “really happy” to see his teammates again and manager Brendan Rodgers, who revealed his battle with the virus.

“I’m so glad because [after] staying home for so long, training alone, I’m so happy to see the boys, to see everyone in the training ground,” Ndidi told the club’s official website.

“It has been amazing because seeing these guys, everyone is okay. So, we’re really happy to be back. I’m really, really happy to see these boys and see the manager and everyone at the club.

“First, we started [training on our own] and then we went into groups of five. So, [in] the groups of five, there was no contact. It’s just some distance, two metres apart.

“Or even more [distance] because you do different drills, you know. So, the good thing is seeing these boys, you get the feeling that everything is coming back, trying to become normal.

“It’s a good feeling. And then the training is getting back and we’re getting used to distancing and training. It has been amazing seeing the boys and giving Bluetooth hugs to everyone!”

Before the suspension of the Premier League in March, Ndidi was unarguably one of the outstanding players in Rodgers’ team.

His ball-winning skills and his contribution of two goals after 23 league appearances so far helped the Foxes climb to third on the table with the hope of playing Champions League football next season.

The Super Eagles midfielder explained that fitness programmes sent by the club have helped him stay in shape ahead of their first game since March 9, when they defeated Aston Villa 4-0.

“They’ve really helped me because those plans were just trying to help you stay in shape, trying to keep you fit ahead of what we’re doing now,” he continued.

“It really helped me because, psychologically, I’m always ready; ready and just trying to improve myself, you know. So, I’d say it has really helped me.

“Training with the other guys now, you see some guys faster than you, so you try to push and try to catch up because you follow the pace of someone even better than you. You have to give 100 per cent.

“I would say we’re ready because even during the lockdown, everyone was working at home. So, we’re always ready and we’ll just see what comes next.

“We’re just working hard. Everyone is keeping fit, working hard and the mentality is great, so we’ll just see what comes in the coming days.”