Leicester City are transitioning into a Premier League team again, but manager Steve Cooper remains confident that they will still be one next season.
Leicester are yet to win any of their first five games since promotion back to the English top-flight after their relegation two years ago, and face a huge challenge at Arsenal on Saturday.
Cooper says his much-changed squad is still adjusting to life in the Premier League again but thinks once they settle and adapt to the bigger challenge, they will achieve their goal of survival.
“We really believe in what we can achieve this year,” he said.
“Very rarely is it plain sailing for a newly promoted team to just be very comfortable throughout a Premier League season.
“I know Leicester should never be in the Championship. We know that and everything about the club is Premier League and we’re back here now, but we are still coming off the back of being a Championship team.
“There’s been some change through the summer. We are still transitioning back to becoming a challenging, competitive Premier League team. That’s the challenge we accept.
“We knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but do we back ourselves to achieve this year.”
Cooper and his team faced criticism from their own fans during their stuttering Carabao Cup win at League Two Walsall on Tuesday night as they needed penalties to reach the last-16, but Cooper says it has only provided him with extra motivation to be a success at Leicester.
“The staff and I really enjoy our work, we really enjoy being at the club,” he added.
“There is so much goodwill, so many good things that have been going on for a number of years now and we’re really proud to be part of it.
“There’s some disappointing sentiment from supporters towards me and some other things. We have to own that and use it as a motivation to try and make people happy, and to be proud of the team, and be excited about the team.
“I take that responsibility very seriously. It is a brilliant opportunity to show how good we can be, how strong we are as characters, and we’ve got to try and continue on that path while obviously getting the results that we need.”
(Plumb Images/Leicester City FC via Getty Images)
