Leicester boss Shakespeare looking past survival next season
REUTERS - Leicester City must look past ensuring their survival in the Premier League next season and set themselves higher goals, manager Craig Shakespeare has said.
Leicester found themselves in a relegation scrap last season under former manager Claudio Ranieri before Shakespeare took over as interim manager in February and led the team to seven wins in their final 12 league matches to secure a 12th-placed finish.
But the club also progressed to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League only to be beaten by Spanish side Atletico Madrid. They failed to qualify for the competition next season.
Shakespeare signed a three-year permanent contract in June and is looking to take the team to new heights.
"Premier League survival is good, but I look at the squad and the players we're trying to attract – I want to be better than that, and I think the players want to be better than that," Shakespeare told the club's website.
"I think our aim is to try and be competitive in every match, whether we're playing Chelsea as Premier League winners last season or a team that's just come up.
"There will be targets internally and privately and I think it's important that the players know what's required."
Shakespeare's first game in charge as permanent manager will be a pre-season trip to Hong Kong where the team will face fellow league rivals West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League Asia Trophy on July 19.
(Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru; Editing by Hugh Lawson)