Shakespeare hopes Morgan will be fit for Atletico clash.

Shakespeare hopes Morgan will be fit for Atletico clash – Craig Shakespeare is hopeful talismanic defender Wes Morgan will be fit to return for Leicester City’s Champions League quarter-final second leg against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.

Morgan, the Leicester captain and centre-back, has been sidelined with a back injury since mid-March and was again missing from the squad that drew 2-2 at Crystal Palace.

But with Robert Huth suspended for the Atletico return — with the English champions trailing 1-0 — Shakespeare’s options in central defence are stretched.

The Leicester manager revealed Morgan had successfully come through a training session on Friday, raising hopes the 33-year-old can face the La Liga side.

“It looked better yesterday,” said Shakespeare, speaking after the match.

“He trained with the group for the whole session. I hope he joins in with the rest of the group tomorrow.

“It’s a big ask for him because it’s a difficult injury to get over, in terms of the power and spring for a centre-back.

“But we’ll give him every opportunity and, with the medical staff, we’ll see what their feelings are and we’ll make a decision.”

Shakespeare was also relieved to discover Yohan Benalouane had not suffered a significant injury despite being forced out of the Palace meeting late on in the game.

“I’m assured it was just cramp,” said Shakespeare. “Cramp can turn into a pull, so it was just a precaution. He’s walking at the moment.

“We’ll get it looked at. They’re in tomorrow for a recovery session and we’ll assess it then,” added the 53-year-old.

Leicester appeared set to head into the Atletico match on the back of a victory that would have drawn a line under any lingering relegation fears.