Jones is a big admirer of Foxes boss Rodgers' attacking style

Hatters boss Graeme Jones declared he is a keen admirer of the managerial style of Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers ahead of going up against his counterpart in tonight's Carabao Cup third round clash at Kenilworth Road.
Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers celebrates beating Tottenham on SaturdayLeicester City boss Brendan Rodgers celebrates beating Tottenham on Saturday
Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers celebrates beating Tottenham on Saturday

The 46-year-old has earned plenty of plaudits over his decade-long career in charge of Watford, Reading, Swansea, Liverpool, Celtic and now the Foxes.

Although he didn't win a trophy during his three years at Anfield, while at Parkhead, Rodgers led the club to two Scottish Premier League titles, two Scottish Cups and three Scottish League Cups.

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Speaking about his opposite number, Jones said: “Mine and Brendan’s paths have crossed through the years.

“I can think of him taking over at Swansea a couple of years after me and Roberto (Martinez) left, I got offered his job at Swansea when he took the Liverpool job.

“Then we played five Merseyside derbies against each other, which are really intense affairs and I admire him, his work, I love his style as he wants to score goals, and he wants to press.

“He’s put together a young, dynamic, athletic, exciting team at Leicester, and you’d never forget the job he did at Celtic.

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“I’ve played in the Scottish Premier League and I know how intense it is up there.

"He left with the League Cup in the bag, so he’d won seven trophies in two and a half years.

“Obviously Neil Lennon went on to win the title, and the Scottish Cup, but Brendan was the architect of that and it’s quite a staggering record at any level of football, what he achieved.

"He’s someone I’ve come up a lot again, someone I admire from a distance, and I look forward to seeing him.”

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Rodgers took over at the King Power Stadium in February of this year and has already invested heavily over the summer, bringing in Youri Tielemans (£40m), Ayoze Perez (£30m), Dennis Praet (£18m) and Luton's own James Justin too.

He has navigated the Foxes to third in the top flight so far, as Jones added: “I think he inherited a good group, but I think he signed some good players as well.

"I’d like to think he’ll thank me for the work we did with Harvey Barnes last season (at West Bromwich Albion), and he had Yuri on loan when he went there, but he made that signing permanent.

"I know Dennis Praet from the Belgium national team, I used to watch him quite regularly when he was at Sampdoria, so I expect to see him out on the pitch.

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"He's the one who’s had the vision to sign these players and put them in the team.

"He’s got the style of play right, but they’re all top players and they’re all very, very young too.

"I think Yuri was captain of Anderlecht when he was 18, he’s played in a World Cup, he’s got to be 22-years old with vast experience and an elite level footballer.

"He’s got an outstanding group of players together with real potential that could achieve anything, so it’s going to be an interesting night."