Leicester City will welcome Bristol City to the King Power Stadium on Saturday as their promotion battle gains momentum.
Leicester City will be keen to hold onto a top-two position in the EFL Championship table when they welcome Bristol City to the King Power Stadium on Saturday.
Enzo Maresca’s side have lost just one game this season in the league, a 1-0 loss to Hull City at home. Another defeat this weekend will see them lose consecutive home games in the competition for the first time since 2011/12.
Leicester are among the favourites to secure Premier League promotion and will want to keep up the pressure on early trendsetters Preston North End. The Foxes have one of the best squads in the second tier, and it will come as a surprise should they slip up in consecutive games at the King Power.
Despite putting points on the board, Leicester are yet to hit top form. Bristol City are six points behind the Foxes and could close the gap should they stun their more illustrious opponents this weekend.
Nigel Pearson will lead Bristol out against the side he took to the Premier League in 2014 and will hope to be a thorn in their side this time around. While the chances of Bristol securing automatic promotion are remote, a playoff spot could be on the cards.
With the Foxes still waiting to secure their first clean sheet at home in the league this year, Bristol have reasons to be optimistic. While they have the l;east potent attack among the top seven sides going into the weekend’s set of matches, Bristol also have conceded just six goals in the league so far- the second least of any side in the Championship. The Hard Tackle looks at how both sides could line up on Sunday and what tactics they might employ.
Team News & Tactics
Leicester City
Feeling the love 🥰 pic.twitter.com/crclLKeoCB
— Leicester City (@LCFC) September 21, 2023
The Foxes have not yet hit top gear under Enzo Maresca but continue to secure results and put points on the board. Within touching distance of Preston North End, all Leicester City need is one set of fixtures to swing their way to rise to the top of the Championship table.
Maresca has largely used a settled side when fit and is unlikely to make wholesome changes despite the midweek clash against Norwich City. It was yet another unspectacular but solid performance, this time at Carrow Road.
Ricardo Pereira, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, and Jamie Vardy were all rested against Norwich and had to settle for a spot on the bench that night. They are all expected to return to action this weekend to face Bristol City.
Veteran defender Conor Coady is also back in contention but is unlikely to make the playing XI. Dennis Praet and Thomas Cannon are the only absentees on the night, handing Maresca plenty of options to choose from.
A 4-3-3 has brought Leicester much success this season and they are expected to retain the position for the game. Mads Hermansen should start in goal behind the back four of Ricardo Pereira, Wout Faes, Jannik Vestergaard and Callum Doyle.
Harry Winks should start in central midfield, where he is expected to be flanked by the duo of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Wilfred Ndidi. Jamie Vardy scored last weekend against Southampton and should once again lead the line with Stephy Mavididi and Kasey McAteer in support.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Hermansen; Pereira, Faes, Vestergaard, Doyle; Ndidi, Winks, Dewsbury-Hall; McAteer, Vardy, Mavididi
Bristol City
Nigel Pearson enjoyed two spells in charge at the King Power and was the man who finally took Leicester back to the Premier League. Despite having been fired after just a season in the top flight, the veteran tactician can be said to have laid the foundations for the Foxes to establish themselves in the Premier League.
He will now seek to drive a wedge into his former side’s ambitions by leading a confident Robins side to the King Power. They do have injury concerns with the likes of Rob Atkinson, Ayman Benarous, Tommy Conway, and Andreas Weimann all unavailable, while Ross McCrorie is a doubt.
Two goals from Nicky Maynard gave us the win at the King Power Stadium back in 2011! ⏮ pic.twitter.com/hoYieQ5nHd
— Bristol City FC (@BristolCity) September 21, 2023
Bristol are likely to adopt a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Max O’Leary in goal. He should be protected by the backline of George Tanner, Zak Vyner, Kal Naismith and Cameron Pring.
Matty James and Joe Williams should rekindle the double pivot in midfield, giving the trio of Mark Sykes, Jason Knight and Sam Bell chances of getting ahead. Nahki Wells should lead the line in attack.
Bristol did well to thrash Plymouth Argyle 4-1 last time around, an impressive performance against a side that has caused several teams many problems. Despite Leicester going into the game as favourites, the Robins certainly have no reason to put their tail between their legs.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): O’Leary; Tanner, Vyner, Naismith, Pring; James, Williams; Sykes, Knight, Bell; Wells
Key Stats
- This is the first time that Leicester City and Bristol City are facing off against each other in the league since the 2012-13 season.
- Bristol City have won just two of their last 19 trips to Leicester. However, both those wins have come in their last four visits.
- Leicester City have now managed to go 16 home games without a clean sheet. This is their worst run in this category since 1957 where they managed to go on a 21-game run.
- Bristol City are on a four-game streak without losing away from home. This includes three wins and a draw.
- A loss on Saturday will see Leicester City lose consecutive home games in the Championship for the first time since 2013.
Player to Watch
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
With James Maddison and Harvey Barnes not at the club anymore, Dewsbury-Hall has stepped up to the plate and to his credit, has delivered. A solid ball carrier who will get forward from the midfield, he has benefitted from Harry Winks’s presence in the centre.
The 24-year-old will once again be tasked with providing the creative spark in midfield and feeding Jamie Vardy and his partners’ goalscoring opportunities. Should the Foxes secure promotion back to the top flight, Dewsbury-Hall will be expecte d to play a starring role in the campaign.
Prediction
Leicester City 2-1 Bristol City
Despite not yet being at their best, Leicester have the experience and know-how to eke out results and secure victories. They will not want to drop any more points at home and will want to put the home record straight sooner rather than later.
Winning away at Carrow Road will imbue them with confidence, handing them the morale and momentum to secure all three points against Bristol City.
