Leicester welcome West Ham to the King Power Stadium in a match where both sides hope to end a four-game winless streak. The ‘Hammers’ sorely need a win in order to keep the relegation zone at a safe distance, while Leicester have little but pride to play for here.
Leicester had the Europa League in sight after defeating Brighton on the last day of March, but since then the ‘Foxes’ have claimed just a single point and last round were thumped 5-0 by Crystal Palace.
Coach Claude Puel (LEI) himself admits, “it is a difficult moment”, but that it “is not the moment to speak about this”, when asked about his future at the club. The Frenchman has a 1.3 points average since taking the helm in October last year, bettering his predecessor Craig Shakespeare’s one point average.
West Ham have a three-point cushion from the relegation zone, and with three matches remaining need a win to stay out of harm’s way. They need to improve defensively though, as 67 conceded goals this season (1.9 on average) is the poorest in the league.
Battle of the beleaguered! Leicester have failed to win a single game in their last five home matches (in all competitions), while West Ham have five losses and one draw from six away games.
Players to watch: Jamie Vardy may have failed to score in his last two starts, but has an impressive record of 11 goals in his last 15 games for club and country.
West Ham’s Marko Arnautovic is on fire at the moment and has an impressive goal tally of six in seven!
Stat attack: This has been Leicester’s game the last few seasons as West Ham have failed to claim a single win in seven matches (W0, D3, L4).
Bad boys. With an average of 2.2 cards a game, West Ham are the PL’s ‘naughty boys’ this season (statistically speaking).
Ten of 18 West Ham away matches (55%) have ended over 3.5 goals this season!
line up:
Leicester (4-4-1-1): Hammer; Chilwell, Maguire, Fuchs, Dragovic; Gray, Ndidi, Barnes, Mahrez; Iheancho; Vardy
West Ham (4-5-2): Adrian; Rice, Ogbonna, Evra; Zabaleta, Kouyete, Noble, Fernadez, Cresswell; Lanzini; Arnautovic
Predictions:
Leicester -0.25
