Claude Puel: My playing style is not boring

30 October 2017 01:54

Claude Puel insists it is a mistake to label his style boring after making a winning start as Leicester manager.

Jamie Vardy's sixth goal of the season and Demarai Gray's deflected effort gave Puel a 2-0 win over Everton at the King Power Stadium on Sunday.

The Foxes' lifted themselves to 11th after recording back-to-back wins in the Premier League for the first time this season.

Puel had been criticised for a perceived tedious style at Southampton last season, where they scored just 17 times at home, but is keen to dispel that myth after his Leicester era began.

"I think it is a mistake because if we see again a lot of games with Southampton, we played some good football and there were a lot of chances we created but without a good clinical edge," said the Frenchman, who was appointed as Craig Shakespeare's replacement on Wednesday.

"When you don't score it is always difficult and a problem is 'we don't play football'. But it was not this with Southampton because we started with the ball, we created a lot of chances.

"We were sixth or seventh in the table for the number of chances created but 20th for being clinical. I like the attack, I like offensive play and quality, of course."

Vardy finished off a quick break after the recalled Gray beat two players during a 60-yard run.

Jonjoe Kenny then sliced Gray's cross into his own net after 29 minutes but the goal was still awarded to Gray, his first in the top flight for over a year.

Meanwhile, former Burnley midfielder Joey Barton, an Everton fan, was critical after the game - hitting out at caretaker manager David Unsworth's appearance.

Barton told talkSPORT: "I saw him getting onto the coach as Everton manager the other day, he doesn't look right. He's waddling onto the coach.

"I was reading a British Army service manual the other day and one of the things it says is 'you've got to be fit to lead your troops into battle'. Now I'm not saying you can't manage Everton if you're overweight but it certainly doesn't look right.

"He's standing in his suit on the touchline, he doesn't look like a manager for me."

But Unsworth dismissed Barton's comments immediately afterwards.

"I've not seen that. It's not a problem what Joey Barton says, I couldn't care less," he said.

On the pitch Everton should have had a penalty after Aaron Lennon was fouled by Christian Fuchs but Unsworth admitted the Toffees, who remain third bottom, are in a relegation battle.

He said: "We have to be honest, we are where we are. The answer to that is yes. But at the same time, (it's) nothing a couple of back-to-back wins wouldn't put right, to settle everyone down.

"The job isn't bigger than I expected. Any manager who comes in wants to get quick results to get confidence rolling but you need time on the grass to get your opinions over."

Source: PA