Leicester City welcome Norwich City to the King Power knowing victory will send them above the drop zone before their relegation rivals play later in the day.
The Foxes are one point behind West Bromwich Albion, who are in 21st place, but eight points behind their rivals, the Canaries, ahead of this game.
Both teams had decent results last season in the Championship during the midweek fixtures, as Leicester held title chasers Middlesbrough to a 1-1 draw and Norwich beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0.
The last meeting
The last meeting between these two teams changed Norwich’s season for the better, as it was the last game of Liam Manning’s tenure at Carrow Road.
Leicester won 2-1 in Norfolk in November, thanks to goals from Bobby Decordova-Reid and Jordan James, after Mathias Kvistgaarden opened the scoring.
Manning was relieved of his duties that night, after two wins in 15 games left Norwich focused on the relegation zone, and Philippe Clement replaced him during the international break.
|
Philippe Clement’s impact at Norwich |
||
|---|---|---|
|
25/26 season |
Manning |
Clement |
|
Games are managed |
15 |
19 |
|
It wins |
2 |
10 |
|
Drawings |
3 |
3 |
|
Loss |
10 |
6 |
|
Points |
9 |
33 |
|
Points per game |
0.60 |
1.74 |
The Belgian has won 10 of 19 games in charge of the Canaries, collecting 33 points, which is how he went eight points clear of Leicester before this game.
Leicester’s recent Championship form:
LLDD
Recent Norwich Championship form:
LWWWW
Group news
Leicester are set for a three-choice upgrade against the Canaries. Gary Rowett has confirmed that both Jordan James and Jamaal Lascelles have returned to training and should be available for selection.
Abdul Fatawu, meanwhile, returned from injury to come off the bench against Middlesbrough on Tuesday night, and the manager has revealed that he is now ready to start, if required.
Meanwhile, Norwich will be without Mohamed Toure, who scored five goals in his first three games for the club, after suffering a groin injury against Sheffield Wednesday that will keep him out for six weeks.
He joined Ante Crnac, Pelle Mattsson, Harry Amass, Shane Duffy, Gabriel Forsyth, Lucien Mahovo, Jovon Makama, Matej Jurasek, Mirko Topic, Papa Amadou Diallo, Oscar Schwartau, and Jeffrey Schlupp alongside the Canaries.
It’s not all bad news for Norwich fans, as Clement confirmed in the pre-match press conference that both Jose Cordoba and Amankwah Forson will return to the team after their injuries.
Predicted list
Leicester (4-2-3-1): Begovic; Ricardo, Okoli, Nelson, Thomas; Skipp, Close your eyes; Fatawu, Mukasa, Mavididi; Yes
Rowett could call on Fatawu’s attacking prowess to secure a first win in ten games in all competitions, as the 21-year-old has scored eight goals and provided seven assists this season.
The experience of Jordan Ayew, who has scored five goals in 33 games, could be used ahead of Daka, after he failed to register a goal against Boro.
Norwich (4-2-3-1): Kovacevic; Fisher, McConville, Cordoba, Chrisene; McLean, Field; Maghoma, Slimane, Ahmed; Kvistgaarden
As mentioned above, Clement does not have much work due to the club’s growing injury problems, but he can make many changes in the team, bringing Cordoba and Ben Chrisene to Harry Darling and Jack Stacey to naturally provide left-footed players on the left side of the defense.
Jacob Wright could also be dropped from Sam Field, who was favored in the last away game against Oxford United, to add a body in the middle.
After his surprise performance on Wednesday night, we may see defender Jakov Medic up front in place of Kvistgaarden in the second half.
