Leicester City
Realistically it’s all gone a bit pear shaped for Leicester this season, hasn’t it? They were knocked out of the FA Cup by Blackburn, and rightfully so. They were the second-best side for the entire game, and so, I suppose couldn’t argue with the result. If there was a hope that the FA Cup would provide some relief or reason to smile amidst a seriously miserable season…well it is gone now.
The Foxes consolidated that loss with defeat to Southampton at the weekend. I don’t think they were particularly outplayed – but with that being said I don’t think they looked as though could have taken the game by the scruff of the neck and make it their own.
Leicester host Chelsea off the back of four straight defeats now, conceding seven goals and scoring just one. It’s not a great look, but if there is a chance to give their season a platform to spring off it’s against a team like Chelsea…and given the season the Blues have had, it might not be too far-fetched either.
Predicted Line-up: Ward, Castagne, Faes, Souttar, Pereira, Mendy, Dewsbury-Hall, Barnes, Maddison, Tete, Iheanacho.
Chelsea
In terms of trying to figure out which Chelsea shows up for this game – your guess, my guess and their guess might be closer than we think! Of course, Chelsea has the team to win this – but whether they can get up and do so is another argument entirely.
When you look at this Chelsea side, the quality is undeniable, and the potential is quite scary to be fair. And yet every week they simply flatter to deceive. The reports out of London suggest that Graham Potter enjoys the patience and support of the Chelsea board but given how invested and hands on they seem to be, I don’t think that remains the case should results not improve.
Thiago Silva’s injury in Chelsea’s defence looks to be a blow – Leicester aren’t goal scoring machines though and if they dictate the game, I suspect they can take it past the capabilities of a sultry Leicester.
Predicted Line-up: Kepa, Azpilicueta, Badiashile, Koulibaly, Chillwell, Kovacic, Fernandez, Mudryk, Felix, Mount, Sterling.