Leicester’s £50 million-rated midfielder Wilfred Ndidi has revealed he was scared when he first joined The Foxes.
The 23-year-old admitted filling N’Golo Kante’s boots in the title-winning side had put him under pressure from day one.
Kante secured a big money move to Chelsea on the back of his pivotal part in leading Leicester to their shock title win in 2016.
Kante won huge acclaim for his role in that fairytale story and Ndidi knew he had to prove he was up to the job.
He took the plunge with a £17 million move from Belgian outfit Genk in January 2017 and hasn’t looked back.
Ndidi said: “The pressure I had was that they just won the league. Kante left and they were looking for a replacement. Seeing this whole situation, it was very scary for me.
“I was comfortable at Genk but it was like an opportunity for me to actually develop in my career.
“It was the right time for me to go because Genk wanted me to progress in my career.
“It was difficult at that time because I had to leave for another country and start afresh.
“Even during training, everyone wanted to see what I can do because the person who just left actually made a mark. So, the pressure was just there.”
Ndidi, who has been linked with Manchester United and some of Europe’s biggest clubs, told Out of Home podcast that he just had to buckle down and try to be himself.
He added: “I encouraged myself to be myself and not trying to fill anybody’s shoes.
“All I wanted to do was make a mark for myself which is so possible; and after playing the first two games, I got comfortable.”