Fans were on their feet applauding and cheering loudly at half-time, enthused by Leicester’s showing, and they were not disappointed 45 minutes later.
Despite Chelsea eventually finding an equaliser, Leicester showed they could go toe-to-toe with the WSL’s best and picked up a crucial point in the process.
At full-time, Chelsea players were on their knees in dismay as Leicester celebrated in a huddle inside the six-yard area they spent over an hour defending.
“We were willing to give them a lot of trouble. It went very well because we scored on a rare occasion that we had [a chance],”said Miquel.
“To be able to lead against this type of team and hold it for so long is very important mentally for our team to move on from here.
“We’ve seen that with mentality and team effort, even when you have less quality, you can compete. It’s a collective effort.”
The statistics do not look great for Leicester but there was optimism about them this summer after Miquel’s tactics had impressed opposition teams in pre-season.
They put in a strong showing on the opening weekend despite losing 1-0 to Arsenal but have been without key players ever since.
Their frontline in particular has been damaged by injuries with Lena Petermann and Jutta Rantala both unavailable, and Rose’s substitution against Chelsea will only add to Miquel’s concerns.
But she is confident that things are improving for Leicester on the pitch, she is implementing her style effectively and results will come.
“Yes it’s not an ideal start but I am someone who has been very patient. I don’t believe any change could be done in two months – even if we had no injuries,” said Miquel.
“We would not have ended up third by the winter break, that’s for sure. It takes time. The hard part is when it doesn’t go well.
“We need all of us – the staff and the players – instead of panicking and trying to change the plan, we need to keep confidence.”
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