Leicester City will hope to strengthen their hold on the top spot when they take on Rotherham United
Leicester City opened up a three point lead at the top of the EFL Championship table last time around and will now hope to pull further away when they welcome Rotherham United to the King Power Stadium on Saturday.
With second-placed Ipswich Town set to travel to third placed Leeds United, it could prove to be an excellent weekend for the Foxes. Leicester play Ipswich next on Boxing Day, meaning Enzo Maresca’s side could come out of the festive period in a strong position to secure top spot and promotion to the Premier League.
Rotherham, on the other hand, are going in the opposite direction and are rock bottom. With just two wins so far in the league, the visitors are the bookies’ darlings to go down. In many ways, Leicester are the strong favourites going into the game.
Leicester won the reverse game 2-1 thanks to a double from Kasey McAteer. Both the clubs have since gone in opposite directions, and that is unlikely to change this week at the King Power. The Hard Tackle takes a look at how these two sides will line up and what tactics they might employ.
Team News & Tactics
Leicester City
The Foxes had to dig deep to win their last two games in the Championship, both by a 3-2 margin. With his side now playing against the most porous defence in the Championship, Enzo Maresca will hope that his side can make easy work on the night.
With the festive season and a massive game against Ipswich Town coming up, Maresca is expected to make changes to his playing XI. However, Jamie Vardy, Kasey McAteer, Yunus Akgun, Marc Albrighton and Callum Doyle are all unavailable thanks to injuries.
The Foxes are likely to retain their 4-3-3 formation that offers flexibility at both ends of the field. Mads Hermansen will serve as the last line of defence and is expected to be protected by the back four of Callum Doyle, Jannik Vestergaard, Wout Faes and Ricardo Pereira.
Harry Winks and Wilfred Ndidi should retain their spots in midfield alongside last week’s goalscorer Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The latter will be tasked with playing further upfield and add more impetus to the attack.
Stephy Mavididi scored twice last time out and will start out wide, with Wanya Marcal-Madivadua doing the same on the other flank. Exit-linked Kelechi Iheanacho should start on the bench, with the in-form Patson Daka given the reins upfront.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Hermansen; Pereira, Faes, Vestergaard, Justin; Ndidi, Winks, Dewsbury-Hall; Fatawu, Daka, Mavididi
Rotherham United
The Millers face a real fight on their hands to retain their spot in the Championship. They go into the weekend nine points off safety, which could become double digits by the time the full-time whistle is blown at the King Power Stadium.
Leam Richardson has been unable to inspire a turnaround so far and will face his biggest challenge yet against the Foxes. Several players are also out injured with Tyler Blackett, Cameron Humphreys, Shane Ferguson, Cafu, Sam Clucas, Fred Onyedinma, and Andre Green all sidelined.
Daniel Ayala is meanwhile suspended after getting sent of against Plymouth Argyle. Defence first will be the philosophy on the night with the visitors opting for a five man backline.
Viktor Johansson should start in between the sticks behind the back five of Dexter Lembikisa, Hakeem Odoffin, Sean Morrison, Grant Hall and Cohen Bramall. Christ Tiehl should form the base in midfield, with Jamie Lindsay and Oliver Rathbone joining him in the middle of the park. Jordan Hugill and Sam Nombe should start upfront and will attempt to catch the Leicester defence off guard.
Probable Lineup (5-3-2): Johansson; Lembikisa, Peltier, Morrison, Hall, Bramall; Lindsay, Tiehi, Rathbone; Hugill, Nombe
Key Stats
- A win on Saturday will see Leicester City complete the double over Rotherham United for the first time sine the 1982/83 league season.
- Rotherham United have lost eight of their last nine away games to Leicester City. Their most recent win away to the Foxes was in 2004 on Boxing Day.
- Leicester City have lost just two home games in the league this season, both to teams from Yorkshire.
- A loss on Saturday will see Rotherham United lose four league games in a row for the first time since April 2021.
- Rotherham United have won just two of their opening 22 Championship games this season. Any side with the same or worse record at this stage of the second tier campaign have been relegated.
Player to Watch
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Fresh from scoring the winner against Birmingham City, the English midfielder will be buzzing. He has been the club’s driving forces this season as they aim to get back into the Premier League and will aim to add to his tally against a poor Rotherham side.
Dewsbury-Hall should once again have the task of progressing the ball and feeding it to the Foxes’ front three. Given the security blanket afforded to him by Wilfred Ndidi and Harry Winks, the youngster can aim to cause damage upfront.
Prediction
Leicester City 2-0 Rotherham United
Leicester City have the numbers and morale to make changes and yet come away with all three points. Rotherham United are likely to fight for their lives and get stuck in. But Enzo Maresca’s side should come away with all three points on the day. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-0 win for the Foxes. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-0 win for the table-toppers.
