After their first defeat of the season at home to Hull City at the King Power Stadium, Leicester City will look to bounce back against promotion rivals Southampton on September 15 at Saint Mary’s Stadium. Last Word on Football brings you the Midlands club’s expected squad.
As expected, coach Enzo Maresca returned to his strongest lineup against Hull City, but his team suffered a 0-1 defeat to the in-form team Tigres. Lots of new signings, with the Filbert Way faithful seeing Yunus Akgun and Abdul Fatawu in action.
With the transfer window now closed on all fronts, the manager will be able to focus on business on the field. Of the four players who have left the team, three are on season-long loan. Timothy Castagne has moved to London side Fulham. Victor Kristiansen moved to Italian club Bologna on loan and Luke Thomas joined top-flight side Sheffield United. Boubakary Soumaré was loaned to Spanish club Seville on deadline day.
The Midlands club currently sit in third place, one point behind leaders Preston North End. After recording six straight wins to start the season and make history, the coach will ask the players to get back to winning ways. The Italian coach also won the Manager of the Month award in August thanks to his 100% success rate.
Obviously, despite being in a high position on the rankings, their performance is still not up to Maresca’s standards. The attacking style and fluidity required by the coach has been evident in small parts of the game so far, but the coaching staff will work to improve this.
The strategy will certainly remain the same, with Pereira playing a reserve role in midfield when Leicester attack. With more options now available on the wing, the team may consider using this tactic as a more effective attacking tactic.
Without further uncertainty regarding the departures and arrivals of players, everyone at the club will breathe a sigh of relief. This will allow the team to settle down and focus only on matters taking place on the football field. Speculation and rumors have certainly unsettled some within the club in recent months. This could be shelved until the next transfer window opens. Leicester City’s injury needs consideration
Conor Coady has returned to training after the international break and could be in the squad. Midfielder Dennis Praet is expected to be out for about 10 weeks with a back injury. New signing Tom Cannon is injured and his return schedule is unknown. There were no other injury concerns.
Leicester City’s expected lineup
Mads Hermansen, Ricardo Pereira, Wout Faes, Callum Doyle, Jaanik Vestergaard, Harry Winks, Wilfred Ndidi, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Abdul Fatawu, Kelechi Iheanacho, Kacey McAteer
