Claudio Ranieri swerved a conversation about 30,000 Jamie Vardy masks by claiming he failed to see them in the stands – but has spotted a drop-off in application by Riyad Mahrez to explain the Algerian's absence from Leicester's starting line-up.
The Italian said Mahrez must provide more in training sessions and revealed he dropped the PFA Player of the Season to try to provoke a response.
'He is not in the good form now, and I wanted to stimulate him,' said Ranieri. 'I didn't see him well during the training session. He must give more for the team.