Steering Leicester to PL title

Shinji Okazaki signed for Leicester last year expecting to be part of a fight for survival.

As the two-week international break starts, the forward heads home to Japan for World Cup qualifiers with Leicester enjoying a commanding lead at the summit of the world’s richest league.

Then on Saturday, Okazaki was a constant threat at Crystal Palace, coming close to scoring twice before fellow forward Riyad Mahrez secured Leicester’s third consecutive 1-0 win.

But the own contribution of Okazaki has been invaluable in his debut season in English football, playing a direct role in collecting 13 points with his five league goals.

A 10 million-euro ($11 million) summer signing from Mainz, Okazaki is the second most-expensive player in Leicester’s squad a modest outlay compared with the tens of millions of pounds that rivals spend on individual players.

“People are paying attention (back home) and took notice when I signed with Leicester,” Okazaki said in the interview with AP’s sports video service.

Okazaki now returns to Japan for World Cup qualifiers against Afghanistan and Syria when he will reach a century of international caps and hope to add to his 47 international goals.

Then it will be back to Leicester for the final seven games of one of the most unpredictable seasons in English football history.