Youri Tielemans remains committed to Leicester’s survival fight, according to boss Dean Smith.
The Foxes are two points from safety ahead of Monday’s crucial visit of Liverpool with time running out to save their Premier League skins.
Captain Tielemans is out of contract in the summer with the club having tried for the last two years to convince him to sign a new deal.
The midfielder is expected to leave on a free transfer but Smith dismissed any suggestions he was not dedicated to keeping the Foxes up.
“I’m completely comfortable with his commitment, I’ve seen nothing but a committed player in and around the training ground and on the pitch,” he said.
“You have to remember our first game against Man City he was coming back from an injury having been out five or six weeks but was committed to play that game to get himself up to speed as quick as he could.
“He’s still playing catch-up a little bit but he’s got qualities that we need in the team.
“I’m very good at reading people and as soon as I met Youri you know that football means a lot to him, the same about Cags (Soyuncu) when I looked him in the eyes and it means a lot to him.”
The Foxes were jeered off at the break in their 5-3 defeat at Fulham on Monday, when they trailed 3-0, but Smith insisted all his squad must handle the criticism.
He said: “I heard the fan reaction at half-time and I understood that but I don’t go off that. Football is about opinions and it always has been, somebody’s favourite player will be somebody else’s not favourite player and that’s football.
“Unfortunately, as players, you have to deal with the opinions of people and that’s their job to deal with that.”
Nottingham Forest and Leeds picked up draws against Chelsea and Newcastle respectively while Everton’s 3-0 defeat to Manchester City means victory over Liverpool will lift the Foxes out of the bottom three.
“I think they (the players) know the position they’re in and they have done since the moment we came in here,” said Smith. “That’s what we reminded them of and the reason why we’re here, to keep us in the Premier League.
“The players are more than aware of that and I think a perception is always different from what I see day to day on the training ground. What I see day to day are a group of players that care.”
Arsenal left wanting at Hacken as Man City seize control in Champions League qualifier
Arsenal are facing an uphill battle after a surprise defeat in their Women's Champions League qualifier, though there was no such shock for Manchester City.
Jonas Eidevall's side were defeated 1-0 in the first leg away to Hacken on Wednesday, leaving a comeback needed in the reverse fixture next Thursday.
An error from visiting defender Katie McCabe, who missed a clearance from a diagonal pass, led to Tabitha Tindell's 77th-minute winner at Bravida Arena.
Arsenal face Man City in the Women's Super League between the two Hacken clashes, and Gareth Taylor's side will head into that domestic fixture with growing confidence from a fine European showing.
City ran out comfortable 5-0 winners away to Paris FC, with Vivianne Miedema scoring the opener on her competitive debut for the club.
Jess Park doubled the lead shortly after, and added a second to her own account later on, along with goals for Mary Fowler and Chloe Kelly in a one-sided outing in France.
Elsewhere in the qualifiers, Juventus secured a 3-1 first-leg lead in a battle of two heavyweights with Paris Saint-Germain.
New signing Amalie Vangsgaard opened the scoring against her former club before Thiniba Samoura levelled with a sumptuous equaliser soon after.
Sofia Cantore set up Juve's first and found the net for the home side's second to restore their lead, before Hanna Bennison wrapped up a fine team move to seal a commanding advantage.
There was no such fortune for Juve's fellow Italian side Fiorentina, however, as Wolfsburg produced a 7-0 hammering in the first leg at Viola Park.
Wolfsburg captain Alexandra Popp dominated with a hat-trick, along with a brace from defender Marina Hegering and goals for Jule Brand and Vivien Endemann.
Sparta Prague 3-0 Salzburg: Hosts end 21-year wait for Champions League win in style
Sparta Prague enjoyed a fine return to the Champions League on Wednesday, recording a 3-0 win over Salzburg in their first game in Europe's top club competition in 19 years.
Sparta grabbed an early lead that set the tone for the league-phase opener at the Epet Arena as home fans celebrated their team's first win in the tournament since 2003.
The hosts opened the scoring just two minutes in when Kaan Kairinen pounced on a loose ball after a great save by Salzburg goalkeeper Janis Blaswich, effortlessly slotting home the rebound.
Victor Olantuji then doubled their lead in the 42nd minute, firing in from a tight angle after taking in a long ball over the top from captain Filip Panak.
Olantuji then turned provider as the hosts killed the game off just before the hour mark, assisting Qazim Laci for a coolly struck finish after a cheap giveaway from Salzburg.
Data Debrief: Long wait ends for Sparta
Sparta's victory, their first in the Champions League since beating Lazio 1-0 in December 2003, saw them halt a 14-game winless run in the competition (four draws, 10 losses).
It is also the first time they have ever started a Champions League campaign with a win, on their eighth appearance in the competition proper.
Bologna 0-0 Shakhtar Donetsk: Skorupski heroics preserve point for Rossoblu
Bologna were held to a 0-0 draw by visitors Shakhtar Donetsk, who saw an early penalty saved, in a lacklustre Champions League opener on Wednesday.
The first half lacked excitement, but Bologna's fans relished the milestone occasion as they returned to Europe's elite club competition for the first time in almost 60 years.
The game was four minutes old, though, when the visitors had a chance to take the lead, Stefan Posch fouling Eguinaldo to concede an early penalty.
However, Bologna goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski denied Heorhiy Sudakov from 12 yards, and that was the most dramatic moment of an otherwise tepid affair.
Despite an energetic start to the second half and a couple of impressive saves from Shakhtar keeper Dmytro Riznyk, neither team could make a breakthrough, taking a point apiece from their first outing in the competition's new-look league phase.
Data Debrief: Skorupski the hero
In a game low on attacking quality, Bologna goalkeeper Skorupski made headlines with his early penalty save, becoming the sixth Polish shot-stopper to keep out a penalty in the Champions League.
It also means that three of the last four penalties taken in the first four minutes of a Champions League game have not found the net.
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