Chelsea vs Leicester: Claudio Ranieri makes Champions League focus clear after Stamford Bridge thrashing

Claudio Ranieri has history with the
Champions League of course. The Italian knows what it takes to go deep into the tournament having led Chelsea to the semi-finals in 2004 before making mistakes in the defeat by Monaco. The Leicester manager has been around long enough to also know that the further a club goes, the more the money pours in.
The trick is balancing European football with the demands of the high-intensity Premier League. But it’s not a trick Ranieri – nor his team – is mastering right now with the club sitting in 13th position with just eight points. His players seem unable to switch between the two tournaments – they have won both Champions League group games and are top of the table. But is Ranieri sending out the right signals by leaving key players on the bench for league matches?
Sky Sports pundit Graeme Souness, who knows a bit about juggling European and league football, thinks not. And there was no hiding where the priority was on Saturday at Stamford Bridge as Ranieri’s side were well beaten 3-0 by Chelsea with Copenhagen – who visit the King Power on Tuesday - the bigger prize in the background. Ranieri left Riyad Mahrez and Islam Slimani on the bench until the last half hour by which time his team were two down and pretty much beaten.