Marti Cifuentes envisions Jordan James’ future at Leicester City extending well beyond his current season-long loan after the midfielder scored once again to help secure a triumph over Swansea.
Wales international James made it two goals in as many matches – both against Welsh sides – when he curled a superb strike from the edge of the box into the top corner at the Swansea.com Stadium.
It was the goal that gave City the lead and, although they were pulled back by a contentious penalty, they responded impressively, sealing their first victory in five through another brilliant finish from Abdul Fatawu and a late header from Jannik Vestergaard.
James has already won over the City supporters, who were chanting his name loudly at full-time in South Wales.
The 21-year-old is currently on a season-long loan from Rennes, but the deal includes an option to buy, and Cifuentes is already thinking long-term with him.
“I knew him from the time he played at Birmingham before he moved to France, when I was at QPR,” Cifuentes said on James. “I was impressed because he was a very young player performing really well in a difficult season for Birmingham.
“We felt it was a very interesting profile for what we were looking for. We were looking for a number eight, someone with the capacity to play at the base, in the pockets, to get into the box and score goals.
“Definitely we cannot expect him to score every weekend but he’s got this in him. He’s got the engine to get into space and help us in the build-up and then to get into the box.
“We’re happy for him. He’s settled in well. He likes it here. We’re happy he’s giving us the strengths we were looking for.
“I hope that it’s going to be with Leicester and he can be a very good player for us for many years.
“The important thing is that he’s improving every week. We’re going to try to help him as much as we can to develop his potential. He’s definitely a very important player for us.”
City appeared to be heading for a fifth consecutive draw when Adam Idah scored from the penalty spot with 20 minutes remaining, but Cifuentes applauded his team’s “mental resilience” to bounce back and secure the win.
“We had a very good period before the penalty situation and what I value the most is the reaction,” he said.
“We spoke about the need to chase goals. It doesn’t matter if you’re performing well, it doesn’t matter if you’re in control, you always need to try to score.
“That’s exactly what the team did. After the penalty the reaction showed a lot of mental strength. I think we were very strong in the last 20 minutes of the game.”