TheUltimateWinner

Talk about obsessed

Isn't there a saying that goes something like if you think everyone else is the problem then maybe you're the problem? Pearson gave him chances in sub appearances, but was kept out by a good strike force at the time. Just take responsibility by saying you shouldn't have chipped it!

Yep haha, didn't see him on the lap of honor at the end after that...

I know it was only like 30 minutes, but he looked much more composed in the centre of defence.

Only positive tonight. I got excited every time he was on the ball.

Not heard that name in a while... there was 10 minutes after we got one back where everyone bar Mahrez was pressing and showing real fight. Anyway I'll save my ranting for the Mahrez thread.

Great pass for Mahrez in the opening 10 minutes then I forgot he was even playing

He's not a midfielder If you played Benalouane in midfield you'd probably have a similar level of performance Fans don't rate him as a midfielder and management don't rate him as a defender... Best thing would be to loan him out and make his mark in one of those positions

What a future this lad has!

Leicester City's Yohan Benalouane on loving art, antiques, car boot sales and life in Leicester By RobTanner | Posted: May 09, 2017 Yohan Benalouane is no shrinking violet Considering he has been at the club for the past two seasons, Leicester City fans may not know much about Yohan Benalouane. The 30-year-old centre back had been a peripheral figure under Claudio Ranieri, the man who made him one of his first City signings when he paid Atalanta £5.6 million for his services in August, 2015. He made just four substitute appearancesas City marched to an incredible Premier League title success and although he started all five of City's cup fixtures he became City's forgotten man as he was sent out on loan to Fiorentina, although injury prevented him from making a single appearance. The French-born Tunisian didn't appear to have a future at the club when he was initially left out of City's Premier League squad but since Craig Shakespeare took over from Ranieri he has been at the fore of City's resurgence. He was finally given his full league debut at West Ham United and has been regular starter in City's defence. However, he remains an enigma to the vast majority of the Blue Army, who will know nothing of his love of nature, art, antiques and of car boot sales. The fact he hands out food to the homeless every Christmas is probably not public knowledge, or that he nearly joined European giants Juventus. Benalouane is in fact a fascinating character. Read More: Benalouane rapidly becoming a Leicester City cult hero. Born in La Palud in the south of France to a Tunisian father and French mother, Benalouane left home at the age of 13 to pursue his dream of becoming a professional footballer at St Etienne. His father had nearly signed for Marseille as a youngster but had to give up his dream to provide for his family, so when his homesick son said he wanted to quit it didn't go down too well. "At the start it was difficult because for the first six months I was like a baby," admits Benaloune. Yohan Benalouane is congratulated after his impressive full Premier League debut at West Ham United by Shinji Okazaki "When you first leave home it is difficult. After five months I called my father and said I wanted to come home. I didn't feel good and I was crying. I was home sick. "But my father said I had made a commitment and I had to honour it. "I had made a decision. He said he knew it was difficult but I had to grow up and be a man. "After a few more months I started to play and it was amazing for me. I loved my work. "At the age of 18 I signed my first professional contract with St Etienne. "It was difficult at first but today I am the man I am because I learned from it." Benalouane took himself out of his comfort zone again in 2010, joining Italian side Cesena after a move to Juventus collapsed. "When I was 23 St Etienne received a transfer offer from Juventus," said Benalouane. "They agreed the fee but when I got to Italy there was a little problem with Juventus and I didn't sign for them. "I didn't want to come back to France because I wanted to try the experience in Italy. I signed for another team (Cesena). It was difficult because I wanted to go to Juventus. "After my first years in Italy were difficult because I had been comfortable in France in my team, but I had to learn a new language. "I was young and it felt the same as when I went to St Etienne. I asked why I had gone there, but after five or six months I started to speak the language and I grew up a lot in Italy." Benalouane spent five years in Italy and spent spells at Parma and Atalanta before Ranieri came calling and he said it was an opportunity he could not turn down. "My dream was always to come to play in England," he said. "When I was younger I watched a lot of English football and I liked it because the referees didn't stop the game. It was fast and physical. "Football is a contact sport and I don't like the players who go down on the floor all the time. In Italy we had this culture. Yohan Benalouane and his suitcase, the real one, not the metaphorical one. "When I was young I said I wanted to go to England. I didn't get the opportunity so when the opportunity to go to Leicester came I said okay. "I was very happy in Atalanta. It is like home for me and I know everybody. I have a lot of friends there and we are all very close, so it was not easy to leave my home, but I wanted to follow my dream." It didn't go exactly to plan straight away for Benalouane as he was left on the sidelines, but he takes a philosophical view on his frustration. "We are lucky to do this as a living," he said. "I have made a lot of sacrifice in my life to be a footballer, but everyone has to make sacrifices. "To be here I am lucky. I go into the city and there are people who don't have this luck in their life. "At Christmas there are a lot of people who are homeless. I think it is good to think about those who are not as lucky as me. For me we are all together in the world. "At Christmas I go out and give something to eat to the homeless people. I do it every year at Christmas because it is a time when people need food but they need something warm in their hearts as well as their belly. "I love my work and love the people who come to the stadium but I think we don't have to forget what happens in the world around you." As for life in England, Benaloune, along with his four-year-old child and Italian girlfriend, has embraced everything about living in rural Leicestershire. "We try to go out and see around us," he explains. "We like to discover places. "Recently I went to Lincoln to see the cathedral. It is beautiful. "I think one of my favourite things about England is nature. The weather is not good, but the countryside is beautiful. "When you travel and see the countryside it is beautiful. "When I went to Italy I learned something. When I came to England I learned something, not just the language. That is the first thing you have to do. "You have to learn the culture, about the people and how they live. After it is like luggage. Yohan Benalouane and the man who signed him but didn't play him at Leicester City, Claudio Ranieri "Afterwards I have a lot of things in my luggage that I carry with me, full of things I have learned. "The love of the people and the beauty of the world is to learn about everyone. "We could talk about many things and afterwards you learn something from me and I learn something from you. We grow as people. "Now we talk about football but we could talk about art because I love art. "I love a lot of art and go to exhibitions with my girlfriend. It is something important to me. "I go with my friend to the car boot sale. A week ago I found something. It was an old projector. It is very old but very beautiful. I am restoring it. "I like antiques that you buy and restore. I love old things so if I see something I like I buy it. It is another passion. "I go because I like on Sunday mornings to get up early and go into the countryside. In France you smell the pollution. In Leicester the air smells different because you are in nature." Philosopher, activist, art collector, naturalist, bargain hunter, Premier League champion and Champions League defender - there are many different sides to Yohan Benalouane.

He's big... he's bald... Great defender.

u21s currently 3-0 up with Barnes scoring 2 goals... Get him in the first team

Very tidy effort from Liverpool.

So long as theres no dabbing and shitty wall running, I'd probably be interested in buying it I like a decent boots on the ground shooter, which is what COD used to be...

Not taking this lightly, I've stocked up with cans of beans and all day breakfasts. I stand with Dave.

Don't know if it has been mentioned elsewhere, but Bayern Munich released this statement yesterday:

Works perfectly in a 5-3-2 WB.

Oh god I don't like this, I know its very slim we still go down but talk about tempting fate... When was that season we defied all the odds?

Fair points and I agree ultimately I hope everyone is safe.

Honestly from what I can see in that video, it looks like the fans did keep their distance and dropped back to the peripheries of the square. Didn't look like many other places they could go without getting hit by a baton.

Yes these people were really looking for trouble enjoying their drinks at the bars...

To be honest... I don't see this guy doing much wrong.

Really wanted to play this but alas they have no mac version

Fvcking Ranieri stealing the beers off the train Update: Street performance is over - last trick was these guys on roller skates jumping over about 8 people laying down.