Leicester City enjoyed the easiest possible introduction to Champions League football as two Riyad Mahrez goals helped them to brush off the limited Group G challenge of Club Bruges 3-0 at the Jan Breydel stadium on Wednesday.
The win was Leicester’s first in any European competition for 55 years and last season’s surprise Premier League champions could not have wished for a better start, taking the lead when Marc Albrighton seized on a misplaced header from a long throw to score in the fifth minute.
The goal secured his position in the club’s history as their first-ever scorer in the competition, and their first in Europe since 2000.
“It was some feeling, something I never thought I’d achieve,” said Albrighton, who has won a Premier League medal, played against Barcelona and now scored in the Champions League since being released by Aston Villa two years ago.
“There is no reason why we can’t win this competition,” he added. “People said we couldn’t win the Premier League but just to be this far is fantastic.”
“It was an important win after that Liverpool defeat,” said Ranieri who has taken his teams out of the group stages in four of his five previous Champions League campaigns.