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LEICESTER boss Steve Cooper escaped a confrontation with a pitch-invader thanks to a player stepping in to floor the intruder.
A seething fan emerged from the away end, ran across the pitch and appeared to be heading for Cooper when he was knocked to the deck.
Walsall star David Okagbue tackled the man before stewards intervened and escorted him out of the ground.
The incident took place 16 minutes from full-time as the Foxes were locked in a goalless stalemate with League Two Walsall.
The minnows forced a penalty shootout but lost 3-0 on spot-kicks.
Cooper insisted afterwards: “I didn’t really see it. But I obviously heard the chanting in the crowd and I’ll own that.
“You’ll never hear me showing any disrespect towards the fans’ opinion of you. That’s what a supporter is, he needs to support his club in how he sees fit.
“I’ve obviously got to build some credit here with the supporters and earn the right to do the job. But I knew that anyway.
“It’s things like that will make me even more determined to do well because I’m desperate to do that. I’ve absolutely no problem with it.”
Earlier, furious Leicester fans chanted: “Cooper, Cooper sort it out,” as the Premier League side struggled to make any impact against Mat Sadler’s Saddlers.
Walsall had already knocked out League One pair Exeter City and Huddersfield Town to reach the Carabao Cup third round for the first time in nine years.
And the high-flying League Two outfit made it clear they weren’t about to sit back and admire their Prem opponents – Sun
Online Reporter