Leicester City host Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon and they will be looking to build on their impressive win over Aston Villa in their last league outing.
The Foxes are currently 14th in the league table but they are just three points clear of the drop zone and Brendan Rogers will be under pressure to guide his side to an important victory here.
Tottenham on the other hand and are coming into this game on the back of two consecutive victories against Fulham and Manchester City. Spurs have picked up 5 wins from their last 6 matches against Leicester City and they will be the favourites heading into this contest.
Tottenham are currently fifth in the league table and they will be desperate to break into the top four.
A win over Leicester City could see them move into the Champions League qualifying positions provided the other results go their way.
Stepping it up for #LEITOT 👊 pic.twitter.com/FYqdOZrIPA
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 10, 2023
Team News and Tactics
Leicester City
The home side will be without the services of James Justin and Ryan Bertrand because of injury problems.
Brendan Rodgers is likely to stick to his 4-2-3-1 formation with Danny Ward in goal.
Timothy Castagne and Victor Kristiansen are likely to be deployed as the full-backs and they will look to create opportunities for their side on the counterattack.
Harry Souttar is likely to partner with Wout Faes at the heart of the defence and they will be expected to contain the likes of Harry Kane here.
Youri Tielemans will partner Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the midfield pivot and the two players will look to break up the opposition play and create opportunities for the home side from the deep.
Tete and Harvey Barnes will line up as the wingers here and they will look to provide width and flair in the final third.
Kelechi Iheanacho is set to lead the line for the home side with James Maddison behind him in the number ten role.
The 26-year-old England international will look to link the attack with the midfield and help break down the Tottenham defence with his incisive passing.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Forster; Castagne, Souttar, Faes, Kristiansen; Tielemans, Dewsbury-Hall; Tete, Maddison, Barnes; Iheanacho
Tottenham
The visitors are without the services of Hugo Lloris and Yves Bissouma because of injury problems. Star defender Cristian Romero is ruled out with a suspension. The Argentine picked up a late red card against Manchester City.
We can confirm that Yves Bissouma is to undergo surgery on Friday to repair a stress fracture to his left ankle.
A timeframe for his return will be determined after surgery.
He will begin rehabilitation with our medical staff as soon as possible.
Get well soon, Yves 💙 pic.twitter.com/i5pj5lkVIG
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 9, 2023
Antonio Conte is likely to shape up his side in a 3-4-2-1 formation with Fraser Forster in goal.
The former Southampton keeper will look to make his mark in the absence of Lloris. In the back three, Davinson Sanchez is set to return to the starting lineup alongside Eric Dier and Ben Davies.
Emerson Royal and Ivan Perisic are likely to be deployed as the wing-backs.
Royal was outstanding against Manchester City and he will look to protect the center-backs and provide an outlet during the attacking phase of the game.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is set to partner Rodrigo Bentancur at the heart of the Tottenham midfield.
Harry Kane is all set to lead the line for Tottenham Hotspur with Son Heung-Min and Dejan Kulusevski behind him creating opportunities in the final third.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Forster; Sanchez, Dier, Davies; Royal, Hojbjerg, Bentancur, Perisic; Kulusevski, Son; Kane
Key Stats
- Tottenham have scored at least 3 goals in their last 4 matches against Leicester in all competitions.
- Tottenham have won their last 4 matches against Leicester in all competitions.
- Leicester have conceded at least 2 goals in 5 of their last 6 matches (Premier League).
- Leicester have scored at least 2 goals in their last 3 home matches against Tottenham in all competitions.
Player to watch
Harry Kane
2️⃣6️⃣7️⃣ and counting ✨ pic.twitter.com/TYDxauFcTi
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 8, 2023
The England international has been in phenomenal form this season and he scored the winning goal against Manchester City in the last league game. He will look to extend his fine run of form here and he is our man to watch this weekend.
Kane has scored 17 goals in 22 league games and he will look to take advantage of Leicester City’s vulnerable back line.
The England international should be able to find the back of the net here. His performance will be vital to Tottenham’s hopes of securing all three points here.
Prediction
Leicester City 1-2 Tottenham
Both teams will be desperate for a win here and this is likely to be a close contest.
Leicester and Tottenham have a number of quality attacking players at their disposal and they will be will looking to grind out all three points.
Both teams are likely to give each other a run for their money but the Hard Tackle predicts Tottenham to come out on top with a narrow 2-1 win.
