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Vancouver Whitecaps FC

'Caps Draw Inspiration from Leicester City's 'Fairytale' Title: 'Hard Work Pays Off'

May 3, 2016 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Vancouver Whitecaps FC News Release


VANCOUVER, BC - Hard work trumps talent.

That's what Vancouver Whitecaps FC coaches and players are taking away from Leicester City's incredible and improbable run to the top of the English Premier League.

'Caps head coach Carl Robinson referred to Leicester's story as a true "fairytale."

A year ago, they barely avoided relegation. Their head coach was fired. And they started the 2015-16 season with 5000-to-1 odds to win the title. That's what happens when you have no big-name players and one of the lowest salaries in the league.

No one in their right mind could have seen this coming, but they did it.

Leicester City are English Premier League champions. Not Chelsea. Not Manchester United. Not Manchester City.

Leicester City.

They're the first club outside of London or Manchester to win the title since 1995. No wonder many are calling this the greatest sports story of all time.

"Unbelievable," Robinson told reporters on Tuesday. "I just said to the guys in there, I don't think it will ever happen in football again. In any league. It still probably hasn't sunk in for me, and I'm on the other side of the world. Speaking to players in England yesterday, they still can't believe it's happened. And that's Premier League players. It's a credit to them."

There will be many theories as to how Leicester stunned the soccer world and emerged as champions for the first time in club history. Some will say it's because they mastered the counter-attack - they have the worst passing accuracy in the entire league and rank 18th in possession. Some will say it's because they had an in-form striker in Jamie Vardy. And some might say they just got lucky.

All of these things likely played a part.

But Robinson also praised their "spirit, togetherness, fight, and desire."

"I think what it shows is that the team must always come first," Robinson said. "If you're willing to roll your sleeves up and work as hard as you possibly can, sometimes that outdoes individual talent. There are arguably 10 teams or maybe even more that have better squads than Leicester City, on paper. But what's paper? Paper's there for being ripped up or using down the toilet."

Robinson relayed a similar sentiment to his group on Tuesday, as the 'Caps returned to training after a weekend defeat to New York City FC. Early on in the session, he assembled the team at centre pitch and demanded more intensity. He said he was pleased with the response.

"You've got to put the intensity in training," Robinson said of his message to the group. "You can't just turn up on gameday and expect it to be good."

Whitecaps FC goalkeeper David Ousted was singing a similar tune on Tuesday. Ousted said Leicester's success is a "great lesson" for the 'Caps, who are 3W-5L-2D through 10 matches.

"It's a perfect example," Ousted said. "Hard work pays off. Leicester might not have the best players in England. But they have the hardest working team in England. That shows what you can do with a team that is mentally set in the right way and that's working hard for each other."

Ousted actually trained with Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel - a fellow Dane - a bit during his youth, and he's not the only Whitecaps FC player with a connection to the new English champions. Turns out goalkeeper Paolo Tornaghi was a member of the Inter Milan organization when the now famed Leicester City head coach Claudio Ranieri took over in 2011.

"I remember the first speech he had," said Tornaghi, whose family is also close with Leicester City assistant Paolo Benetti. "He was talking in Spanish because we had many Argentina players. He was talking about finding a little bit of fire."

And that's exactly what Whitecaps FC will be looking to do on Saturday, when longtime rival and defending MLS Cup champions Portland Timbers come to town for the first time this season (2 p.m. PT on TSN1 - limited tickets still available).

Be a part of the best sporting atmosphere in Vancouver! Whitecaps FC offer a flexible range of ticket products, including Half-Season Packs, 5-Packs, a Youth Soccer Half-Season Ticket, and single match tickets. For more information, visit whitecapsfc.com/tickets.

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