Ghanaian defender Paul Appiah, born in the Netherlands, has shared insights into the supportive atmosphere provided by Leicester City forward Jamie Vardy and Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana during training sessions with the Foxes.
Appiah, who joined the former Premier League champions from Aston Villa in November, is currently on a short-term loan at non-league side Maidstone, where he made his debut against St Albans over the weekend.
Reflecting on his interactions with the Leicester City legend, Appiah remarked, “Vardy’s a handful. You’ve got to check your shoulders with him – you can’t miss him. If you take your eye off him for a second, he’ll catch you in behind, but training with him is good.”
He went on to highlight Vardy’s supportive role, especially with young players: “Vardy’s one of those players in the first team where he puts his arm around the young players, he helps them, he gets them through a session. He wants us to show our personality.”
Recalling one of his initial sessions with Vardy, Appiah shared, “He said I shouldn’t be afraid to put a challenge on him, so he wants the young ones to do well. That’s just how it is with the players – they know what it’s like coming up through the ranks, so they’re supportive.”
Although no longer with Leicester, Wesley Fofana left a lasting impression on Appiah after joining the 2016 Premier League champions. Appiah described Fofana, who later moved to Chelsea for a reported £70 million fee, as an older brother figure during his early days at Leicester.
“When I first joined last season, Wes Fofana was like an older brother to me. He was just about to leave but during pre-season, I spent a lot of time with the first team, and he helped me a lot. He got me through it, he was positive with me, he helped me a lot with one v one defending, giving me tips, and a lot of the time in training, me and him were a partnership at the back. It was good to train and work alongside a player like him.”
