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Jamie Vardy says Leicester 'proud' as they bow out of Champions League

Jamie Vardy said he and his Leicester teammates could be proud after they gave everything in their unsuccessful bid to prolong the club's Champions League campaign on Tuesday night.

The England striker scored as the Foxes drew 1-1 with Atletico Madrid in their quarterfinal second-leg match at the King Power Stadium -- but bowed out on aggregate after Antoine Griezmann's penalty separated the teams in the Spanish capital last week.

Vardy told BT Sport afterwards: "We've given our all, especially in the second half. They made a few blocks on the line which on another day would've gone in.

"We were definitely in the ascendancy, you could see the way we were playing. We brought Leo [Leonardo Ulloa] on to cause an aerial threat and it started paying dividends for us.

"[Atletico] are probably used to playing teams who keep possession more, so we were going direct.

"It was just unfortunate we didn't get the result we wanted. It wasn't to be but at least everyone gave it their all. The lads can be proud of themselves, they've given everything.''

On Leicester's Champions League adventure, Vardy added: "We knew it was going to be hard. Every game has been the same up to now. We had to concentrate on what we do best.

"The Champions League was a new experience for most of us, we definitely enjoyed it. Now we've got some unfinished business to stay in the Premier League.''

Foxes boss Craig Shakespeare added that his felt "disappointed to go out, but immensely proud of the performance,"

He said after the match: "We gave an excellent team a really good shot. The players should be proud, but they're ultimately disappointed to go out."

The interim boss, officially in charge only until the end of this season, said that the switch to a 3-4-1-2 system had been in his thoughts before the game.

"We had planned it in advance," Shakespeare said. "I didn't expect to do it that early. I thought we played alright first half, but we needed to be more of a threat. We've spoken about being direct, playing Jamie and Riyad [Mahrez] off Leo. The players attitude to make that work was first class. We got the goal, but couldn't quite get the breaks to get any more."

Shakespeare said that this run, in which last season's unlikely champions outlasted all the other English teams in Europe, will inspire his players to go on and return to the continent's top level.

"I hope the benefit is that they want more of it," he said. "Players ultimately want to play at the highest level, but we have to get back to winning ways in the Premier League now."

On his own future. Shakespeare would not be drawn, other than to confirm that he would like the job on a more permanent basis.

"It's not in my hands," he said. "We'll have to sit down at the end of the season. I'm more than happy to do that before. I'm pitting my wits against the best in the world. At the end of the season I'll be able to reflect on my own performance and that of the club."

ESPN FC writer Nick Miller contributed to this story.

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