Leicester City vs A.F.C. Bournemouth
Date: 03/03/18
K/O: 15.00pm
Venue: King Power Stadium
Referee: Lee Probert
Claude Puel’s Leicester City host A.F.C. Bournemouth on Saturday at the King Power, with a win for the Foxes potentially lifting them up to seventh place in the Premier League table.
Leicester have only managed two victories in their last 11 league games (D4, L5), and Puel’s side will be looking for three valuable points when Howe’s Bournemouth visit on Saturday.
Marc Albrighton, Leicester City winger, recently stated in an interview with Sky Sports that Puel has outlined his ambitions for the club as finishing top of the ‘second league’ in 2017/18, and a win against Bournemouth on Saturday would lift the Foxes into Puel’s desired finishing spot for the campaign.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe visitors, A.F.C. Bournemouth, have shown remarkable resilience when the threat of relegation moved from a possibility to a distinct reality, with a seven game unbeaten run, the Cherries’ best ever in the Premier League, lifting them into the top half of the Premier League table.
The resurgence of the south coast club has coincided with a return to form from their then club-record £15m signing, Jordan Ibe, and the Bournemouth’s eclectic front man will be looking to capitalise on a Leicester defence that has conceded seven goals in their last three Premier League games.
Team News:
Leicester could welcome the turn of forward Shinji Okazaki, who has recovered from a knee injury after missing the Foxes’ last three matches. Aside from the potential introduction of Okazaki, Puel is expected to name the same starting XI that drew to Stoke last weekend.
Bournemouth are likely to remain similarly unchanged, with manager Eddie Howe reporting no fresh injury concerns in his mid-week press conference, although defender Tyrone Mings remains sidelined and is receiving treatment for a back injury.
Embed from Getty ImagesPredicted Starting XI’s:
LEI: Schmeichel; Simpson, Maguire, Morgan, Chilwell; Mahrez, James, Albrighton, Ndidi; Iheanacho, Vardy.
BOU: Begovic; Francis, Cook, Ake; Smith, Gosling, Cook, Daniels; Stanislas, King, Wilson.
Prediction: Leicester City 2 A.F.C. Bournemouth 1
Written by Tom Newman.