Nigerian duo, Kelechi Iheanacho and Wilfred Onyinyen Ndidi of Leicester City FC will be on their way to Thailand this weekend, as they join The Foxes for the burial of their late club owner.
Although the team will be in action same day against Cardiff City in the English Premier League, Iheanacho, Ndidi, and the other players will travel for the funeral of Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha in Bangkok after Saturday’s game.
The 60-year-old billionaire bought the club in 2010 and the team went on to stun the football world by winning the English Premier League title against the odds in 2016.
However, Vichai died last Saturday along with four others when his helicopter crashed next to Leicester’s King Power Stadium.
The funeral, which is built to last a week, starts on Saturday in Bangkok, but Leicester top striker, Jamie Vardy said he and the other players have to be there from the start.
The former England star said the last week had been the hardest of his life but the players, who will travel by road to Cardiff, were keen to play on Saturday.
“We all spoke about wanting to play. It’s what Vichai would have wanted and that’s we are going to do.
“We know what we have to do and we need to go out and honour his name and put in a performance which will hopefully get the win.
“That’s how we are — we are a close-knit group. We are one big family and one of the main reasons for that is Vichai. For us to be there is massively important.
“It is going to be tough and it will be very emotional, but we’ve all chatted about it. People are saying the result doesn’t matter, but for us lads, we want to make it a positive result,” Vardy said.
This article was most recently revised and updated 5 years ago
