Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers believes that Kelechi Iheanacho was the right choice to take the Foxes' penalty against Crystal Palace, even though the Nigeria international fluffed his lines.
The King Power Stadium outfit were awarded a penalty after James Tomkins brought down Luke Thomas in the box during their 1-1 draw against the Eagles in Monday’s Premier League game.
Iheanacho was handed the opportunity to take the spot-kick, but his effort was saved by goalkeeper Vicente Guaita.
Wilfried Zaha later opened the scoring in the encounter for Crystal Palace before Harvey Barnes scored an important equalizer to help the Foxes avoid defeat.
Rodgers confirmed the Super Eagles forward has proven his suitability to take the Foxes' penalty in training, and encouraged the attacker to put the disappointment behind him.
"I said at half time, it was one you have to let go of. He practised yesterday and hit five out of five, so he was confident, but it is just one of those things," Rodgers told Amazon Prime.
Despite the draw, Leicester maintain the second spot on the Premier League table after gathering 29 points from 16 games.
Iheanacho is gradually establishing himself at the King Power Stadium, having struggled for consistency since his arrival at the club.
The centre-forward teamed up with the Foxes in the summer of 2017 from Manchester City and has now made 78 Premier League appearances, scoring 28 goals.
In the current campaign, the 24-year-old has scored three goals and provided four assists in 15 appearances across all competitions.
The forward will hope to deliver a better performance when Leicester square off against Newcastle United in the next Premier League game on January 3.
Iheanacho's recent form earned him a return to the Nigeria national team after missing their Africa Cup of Nations campaign in Egypt, where the Super Eagles finished third.
The attacker featured prominently for the three-time African champions in their recent friendlies and Afcon qualifiers.