Barnes has made 101 appearances for the Foxes in all competitions so far, scoring 21 goals in that time.

The winger made his professional debut for the club five years ago when he appeared in a UEFA Champions League clash against Porto.

The 23-year-old has been on the club’s books since he was nine years old and came through the academy.

Barnes had a fantastic season in 2020/21, scoring 13 times and making his debut for England before injury brought an end to his season early.

“I’ve been here for so many years now, it feels like home,” he said.

“For me, it was a no-brainer. Of course, I wanted to extend my stay here.

“It’s been something that’s been going on in the background and to sign now is great. It’s right at the start of a new season as well, which I know everyone is excited about.”

The winger has established himself in the side under Brendan Rodgers and is a key figure in the Leicester attack.

He was unavailable for the FA Cup final last season through injury but played 72 minutes in the FA Community Shield win over Premier League champions Manchester City.

Barnes had loan spells at MK Dons, Barnsley and West Brom before breaking into his parent club’s first team.

The winger was involved in 16 goals in 28 appearances for West Brom and was recalled midway through the season by Leicester and Barnes has been a regular in the side since.

He was previously contracted to a five-year deal that he had signed in the summer of 2019.

The post Leicester Winger Harvey Barnes Signs New Contract Until 2025 appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Wesley Fofana fractured his right fibula after he was on the receiving end of a tackle from Villarreal attacker Fernando Nino.

“Obviously, to lose a player with such an injury in a friendly game was devastating for us – and for the player himself, more importantly,” Rodgers said in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports. “He had been very, very good over the course of pre-season and was looking forward to the beginning of the season.”

Rodgers drafted squad player Daniel Amartey into the centre of his defence for the Community Shield win over Manchester City on Saturday.

He was impressed with the Ghanaian’s performance beside Caglar Soyuncu as they kept a clean sheet against the likes of Riyad Mahrez.

However, the Leicester City boss is interested in strengthening the position with another signing after losing Fofana for a substantial period of time.

Rodgers told Sky Sports: “Hopefully we can. It’s an area where we are a little light with Jonny out as well for a period of time with a foot injury.

“With all the games we’re going to have over the course of the season, we need to have cover in those positions.

“It is something the club are currently looking at.”

Leicester has an impressive recent history when it comes to recruitment, with the injured French defender being one of the examples of this.

Their stellar recruitment led to the famous Premier League-winning season of 2015/16 as £5 million signing N’Golo Kante and £450,000 addition Riyad Mahrez shone alongside other cut-price players to take the side to the top of English football.

The trend has continued under Rodgers with the club having a net spend of £48.9 million under the former Liverpool and Celtic boss.

That is less than Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Leeds – all of whom they finished above last season.

Rodgers is involved in the recruitment process at the club and hailed their ability to find players suited to the club.

He added: “I think at this moment in time, Leicester City is a very attractive place to be. If you want to develop as a player, work in world-class training facilities and be a part of a real community club with a family feel, then this is a great place for you.”

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The 27-year-old has already spent five years at the club after joining from Everton for £50 million in 2016.

Stones’ career at City before last season was filled with individual highs and lows but a stellar season at the back alongside Portuguese centre-half Ruben Dias has seen fans’ opinions of him change.

His 22 appearances in the league garnered 13 clean sheets and the Barnsley native was a key piece in Manchester City’s run to the UEFA Champions League final.

His performances in the semi-finals against Paris Saint-Germain defined a fantastic season for the centre-half.

His form across his 35 appearances for the Citizens earned Stones a call-up to the English international setup.

Stones started every game for Gareth Southgate’s side as they went on a run to the final, falling at the last hurdle to Italy in Wembley.

He has made 168 appearances for Manchester City at the time of writing and has won every trophy in domestic football in England while at the club.

The England international has three Premier Leagues, two League Cups, one FA Cup and two Community Shields to his name.

“I couldn’t be happier,” Stones said. “I love being part of this squad. There are so many quality players here and I know we can continue winning trophies, which is my main focus.

“Working with the manager is a dream – he has taught me so much about the game and I feel like I learn something new every single day.

“The success we’ve had in the last four years has been incredible. To be a part of it has been a dream come true and I just want to continue winning.

“This is the best place for me to play my football and fulfil my ambitions.”

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The FA Cup, since it’s inception really, has been subject to the odd cup upset. There have been plenty of famous FA Cup incidents over the years, including; Wrexham’s victory over Arsenal in 1992, Histon’s win against Leeds in 2008 and Tottenham Hotspur – who were non-league at the time – lifting the cup in 1901.

Last Friday marked the beginning of the FA Cup 3^rd round, otherwise known as the stage where clubs from the top 2 division in English football enter the competition.

There were plenty of “David vs. Goliath” encounters in the 3^rd round. The most notable of the bunch featuring 2019 Champions League finalists Tottenham Hotspur against 8^th tier outfit Histon.

Here are the biggest shocks of the 2020/2021 FA Cup 3^rd round.

CRAWLEY TOWN 3-0 LEEDS UNITED

Arguably the biggest upset of the round came as League Two outfit Crawley Town defeated Premier League side Leeds United.

64 places separated the two teams going into the match. That fact clearly didn’t phase Crawley as they came out with a highly impressive 3-0 win.

Nick Tsaroulla opened the scoring in the 50^th minute with an incredible solo goal. He ran with the ball from well outside the box, swivelling past several defenders in the process before blasting into the bottom corner.

Ashley Nadeson doubled their lead just minutes later with a well-executed finish past the near post. Kiko Casilla could perhaps be criticized for his ‘keeping leading to the goal but take nothing away from Nadeson.

Crawley added insult to injury with a 3^rd and final goal in the 70^th minute. Jordan Tunnicliffe was the scorer this time around.

Crawley are now through to the 4^th round for the first time since 2012. They’ll travel to Championship side Bournemouth in the next round of fixtures.

IT IS OVER!

REDS 3-0 LEEDS UNITED

WE ARE MASSIVE. #TownTeamTogether pic.twitter.com/QzV85twPem

— Crawley Town FC (@crawleytown) JANUARY 10, 2021

CHORLEY 2-0 DERBY COUNTY

National League North side Chorley were the 2^nd lowest ranked team – behind Marine – in the FA Cup 3^rd round. They took on Championship side Derby County with hopes of progressing to the 4^th round.

Their chances were amplified as Derby were forced to field a youth side due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the senior squad. Chorley took the chance presented to them and defeated the young Derby side by 2-0.

The first goal didn’t take long to come, Connor Hall hit the net in the 10^th minute after a scramble in the box. Hall has now scored in his last 3 FA Cup matches.

Mike Calveley secured victory for Chorley in the 84^th minute with a close-range shot.

Chorley have been drawn at home against Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers for the next round.

Living the dream

#FlyMagpiesFly pic.twitter.com/daLuFHckoT

— Chorley FC (@chorleyfc) JANUARY 9, 2021

BLACKPOOL 2-2 WEST BROM (3-2 TO BLACKPOOL ON PENALTIES)

Blackpool are having an unremarkable but solid season in League One, sitting 13^th in the table. West Brom, on the other hand, have been struggling since transitioning from the Championship to the Premier League.

Sam Allardyce was yet to win a game as West Brom manager before the match against Blackpool and that stat would remain unchanged at the full-time whistle.

Blackpool managed a victory on penalties after a hard-fought 120 minutes of football.

Jerry Yates opened the scoring for Blackpool in the 40^th minute as he finished off an inviting pass from Bez Lubula. In truth, Blackpool were good value for their lead having been the better team up until that stage.

Semi Ajayi, as he has done previously in the season, equalized for West Brom with a towering header in the 52^nd minute.

Gary Madine struck cleanly from outside the box in the 66^th minute to regain Blackpool’s lead. The goal came after a fluid counter-attack from Blackpool.

West Brom were given a golden opportunity to equalize in the 80^th minute after a Blackpool player was adjudged to have handled inside the box. Matheus Pereira stepped up to the spot and made no mistake as he made it 2-2.

Full-time ended 2-2 and no further goals followed in extra time. 120 minutes finished with the teams on level terms meaning a penalty shootout was needed to decide a winner.

PENALTY SHOOT-OUT

Blackpool missed their first penalty but went on to score their next 3, meanwhile West Brom had 2 of their 4 penalties saved by Chris Maxwell in the Blackpool goal.

Sullay Kaikai stepped up to take Blakcpool’s 5^th penalty knowing if he scored, they would go through to the next round. Cruelly, though, he missed as he hammered his penalty off the post.

West Brom had to score their next penalty otherwise they would be knocked out of the competition. Matheus Pereira stepped up to take another penalty but this time he would be denied by shootout hero Chris Maxwell. His save meant Blackpool progressed to the FA Cup 4^th round.

They have been drawn away to Brighton & Hove Albion for the next round of the competition.

MAXWELL DENIES PEREIRA! THE SEASIDERS ARE THROUGH!!!

BPL:
WBA:

— Blackpool FC (@BlackpoolFC) JANUARY 9, 2021

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Crawley Town took on Leeds United today in a much-publicised FA Cup 3^rd round fixture. The pre-match attention was focused on whether Crawley could produce a “giant-killing” performance, but rather the potential debut of reality TV star, Mark Wright.

64 places separate Leeds and Crawley in the English football pyramid leaving many sceptical about the League Two sides’ chances.

Additionally, Leeds put out a strong starting team featuring a number of first team regulars. Viewers could be forgiven for expecting a Leeds walkover.

The FA Cup, though, has a reputation for providing cup upsets throughout its history. Leeds, in particular, have been on the wrong end of cup upsets several times in the past.

Today, they suffered one of the most high-profile shocks in recent FA Cup history.

Not only did Crawley win, but they did so comfortably.  They managed a 3-0 victory against Marcelo Bielsa’s side.

As mentioned previously, much of the pre-match attention was on the potential debut of Mark Wright, given most thought it would be a straightforward Leeds victory.

That all changed when Crawley opened the scoring in the 50^th minute leaving viewers to ponder whether a shock was on the cards. Nick Tsaroulla was the goalscorer and what a strike it was. He swivelled past a number of Leeds United players as he moved into the box before unleashing a well struck shot into the bottom corner.

Crawley could have sat back thereafter and hoped for a result but that was not the case. In fact, they got their second just minutes after. Ashley Nadeson was played through and he found himself in the box but at a tight angle, that didn’t phase him though and he struck a low shot into the near corner. Leeds’ goalkeeper Kiko Casilla should have done better at his near post but take nothing away from Ashley Nadeson, he worked hard and was rewarded for it with a goal.

They all but secured victory in the 70^th minute as they got their 3^rd goal of the night. This time Jordan Tunnicliffe smashed into the back of the net after a scramble in the box caused by an indirect free kick.

Reality star Mark Wright was brought on in the 90^th minute for his Crawley Town debut after victory was almost certainly secured.

Wright signed for Crawley on a non-contract basis last month as part of an upcoming TV mini-series titled ‘Mark Wright: The Last Chance’.

His introduction today seen him make his professional debut at the age of 33. He previously played at a semi-professional level before settling for a career in television.

The score ended 3-0 to Crawley with the players and staff deserving enormous credit for the performance and result.

Crawley are now through to the FA Cup 4^th round for the first time since 2012.

Their opponents will be decided on Monday.

IT IS OVER!

REDS 3-0 LEEDS UNITED

WE ARE MASSIVE. #TownTeamTogether pic.twitter.com/QzV85twPem

— Crawley Town FC (@crawleytown) January 10, 2021

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