Imperious Riyad Mahrez leaves Leicester fans in celebratory mood in Belgium

Claudio Ranieri described Leicester’s prospects of winning the Champions League as ‘impossible’ but their travelling fans were of a different opinion

One down, 12 matches to go. “Impossible,” says Claudio Ranieri and the Leicester City manager may well be right when he rules out the prospect of the English champions being crowned kings of Europe, but the first step on a long road to the final was taken with the minimum of fuss on a balmy evening in Belgium.

The phrase ‘dream start’ barely does it justice as Leicester’s inaugural Champions League match turned into a belated extension of their title celebrations, with Ranieri’s players cantering to a victory that was every bit as comfortable as the scoreline suggests. “Don’t take me home, please don’t take me home,” chanted the Leicester supporters, presumably in between rubbing their eyes at the madness of it all.

Related: Leicester City ease to victory over Club Brugge on Champions League debut

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