Leicester City vs Leeds United
Leicester City just can’t seem to lose at the moment. They extended their unbeaten run in the Premier League to seven games with a 1-1 draw away to Everton in midweek.
However, the Foxes have a few key injury concerns to deal with ahead of Leeds United’s visit to the King Power Stadium this weekend.
After three consecutive losses, the Whites finally got back to winning ways with a 2-1 victory over struggling Newcastle. Can they capitalize on Leicester’s current injury problems and score another big away win?
Talking Points
Foxes facing a few injury issues
Leicester City’s run of three-straight wins in the league and five-straight in all competitions came to an end as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Everton at Goodison Park.
James Rodriguez gave the hosts the lead, but Youri Tielemans equalised for Leicester, who still extended their current unbeaten run to nine games in all competitions.
Despite the absence of top scorer Jamie Vardy – who will miss the next few weeks due to his hernia injury – Leicester still bossed the match. They controlled 65 per cent of possession and had a 19-8 advantage in shots.
However, they did seem to miss the clinical finishing in front of goal which Vardy’s replacement, Ayoze Perez, was unable to provide. James Maddison had a team-high 5 shots, but his run of four consecutive games with a goal finally came to an end.
Aside from Vardy, Rodgers also has two new injury concerns to deal with as defensive midfielder Wilfred Ndidi and centre-back Jonny Evans both had to exit the Everton match with knocks.
The two are crucial players to Leicester’s defence, but even if they both miss out, the Foxes still figure to be the favourites according to the Premier League 2021 odds since they have some capable replacements in Nampalys Mendy and Caglar Soyuncu.
Leeds’ main man slumping
Leeds United snapped their run of three losses on the bounce with a 2-1 win over struggling Newcastle. But despite dominating possession, Leeds were surprisingly outshot 22-9 by the home side and had just two shots on target.
That’s now the second straight game Leeds have managed only single-digit shot totals; they were held to just 7 shots in their 1-0 home loss to Brighton.
After a red-hot start to the season, Patrick Bamford appears have cooled off. Leeds’ top scorer (10 goals) hasn’t found the net in his last four games, which is his longest goal drought of the campaign.
Bamford was subbed off on the hour mark against Newcastle in favour of Tyler Roberts, who has yet to score in 10 appearances this season.
With Bamford failing to create Premier League 2021 highlights of late, Leeds must continue to rely on wingers Raphinha and Jack Harrison to bolster the attack.
Raphinha, who scored the opener against Newcastle, has been one of the bright spots in Leeds’ season thus far. He now has 3 goals and 3 assists in 14 appearances. Meanwhile, Harrison, who got the winner, is now up to 4 goals with 4 assists.
Bielsa must also reorganise his defence once again after Diego Llorente suffered another injury setback against Newcastle. Luke Ayling and Pascal Struijk are the unlucky Spaniard’s likely replacements.
History
The Premier League head-to-head record between Leicester and Leeds has been very evenly matched. Both sides currently have 8 wins apiece, with just one draw.
Leicester drew level after thumping Leeds 4-1 at Elland Road in their first meeting this season. That was their first Premier League encounter since 2004. Youri Tielemans starred with two goals, while Vardy had a goal and an assist.
Prior to this season, the two clubs had met 9 times in the Championship, which was also even. Leicester had a slight 3-2 edge in wins, with 4 draws. Leicester also won their most recent League Cup tie in 2017.
Betting Tip
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Leicester City vs Leeds United | Under 3.00 @ 1.83 |
| January 31, 22:00 (GMT+8) |
Despite Vardy’s injury, SBOTOP odds still have Leicester priced as 1.89 favourites to get the home win, while Leeds are at 3.80. A draw is 3.60.
While the first meeting between these two teams was a high-scoring affair, there is unlikely to be nearly as many goals this time around at the King Power.
Vardy’s absence significantly limits Leicester’s attacking potential, and neither Ayoze Perez nor Kelechi Iheanacho appears to be a suitable backup. Meanwhile, Leeds have their own struggles in front of goal of late, which points to a fairly low scoring contest between the two clubs.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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