Danny Drinkwater says he is well-equipped to deal with the pressure Leicester City are now under to make the play-offs.

City are 13th in the Championship and eight points adrift of the top six following Saturday's controversial 1-0 defeat at Brighton, and need a run of wins to re-ignite their push up the table.

But Drinkwater, who made his first start for City at the Amex Stadium, said being brought up as a Manchester United player has taught him all he needs to know about pressure and expectation.

The 21-year-old spent more than 10 years at Old Trafford without making a first-team appearance, and had been on loan at Huddersfield, Cardiff, Watford and Barnsley before making a £1million move to the King Power Stadium.

But, while he admitted he has "not been in and around United", he said: "I am used to pressure having come from there. It is huge pressure there. It can either help you or you go into your shell."

Drinkwater added: "I haven't got United as a back-up now. I can never go back and I want to play for Leicester.

"Hopefully, that will help me and it might put me in another gear and kick me on, although it has not really felt like leaving what I could call home as I have been on loan for quite a few seasons now.

"But you do think about it. I still live in Manchester and it is hard for me to leave home as I am not the kind who likes moving around the country.

"I probably won't move too far from Manchester and I know there are a few lads who live up there, so I will probably jump in the car with them."

Drinkwater was given a licence to push forward during his spell at Barnsley and sparkled in the Tykes' 2-1 win at City last month.

He said: "I like roaming about and having space but, at the same time, I can do the defensive stuff as well. Hopefully, the gaffer here has seen what I can do with the freedom.

"At the start of the loan at Barnsley, I was used as a defensive midfielder because they were looking to lock it down and got players in to help do that.

"The gaffer here just wants me to hit the ground running and carry on where I left off at Barnsley. We have some great players who are better than me attacking-wise, but I want to make my contribution."