Leicester City
Fulham FC
Fulham FC
Leicester favourites to bounce back from defeat against lowly Fulham
Leicester to win 3-0
On paper, this should be one of the most one-sided matches of the weekend, with impressive Leicester taking on a Fulham side who slipped to defeat last weekend after securing their first win two games before.
Leicester themselves felt the full force of Liverpool’s power last weekend, losing in an impressive 3-0 win for the Champions. Many expected them to challenge The Reds closely, so such a one-sided defeat will come as a disappointment for the Foxes.
Still, their form has been strong of late and will fancy their chances of bouncing back against one of the poorest sides in the league so far.
Fulham would have hoped to have turned a corner after securing their first win of the season against fellow strugglers West Brom, though have since slipped to two further defeats to West Ham and Everton.
This has the makings of a one-sided thrashing, but with the way which this season has gone, nothing would surprise us.
Form Guide (all comps): WWWLD
Reasons to be cheerful:
League form is impressive despite Anfield loss
Fulham are unlikely to trouble them
Reasons to be fearful:
Injuries still wreaking havoc with their squad
They must serve Jamie Vardy better than they have recently
Despite their good form this season, Leicester will feel that there is room for improvement when playing at home.
Of their four matches at the King Power, they’ve won two and lost two, losing poorly to both Aston Villa and West Ham, although they have seen off the likes of Manchester City and Arsenal on their travels.
Their defeat against Liverpool last weekend showed how much they are still missing several key players, particularly in the wide positions. Right back Ricardo is one of the best in the league, and Castagne has slotted in nicely at left back.
Wilfred Ndidi has resumed training this week, so could be fit enough to return to the Leicester midfield, a position where they were outplayed against Liverpool.
Regardless, Fulham are unlikely to provide the sternest test.
Star Man – Jamie Vardy
Was starved of service against Liverpool but should have his eye on scoring this weekend.
Form Guide (all comps): DLWLL
Reasons to be cheerful
Played well against Everton last weekend
Leicester’s home form has been mixed
Reasons to be fearful
Next three fixtures are arguably unwinnable
No one has conceded more goals than Fulham
Fulham missed yet another penalty in their defeat last weekend, their second in a row that would have earned them a point.
Two points would lift them out of the relegation zone right now, so you can imagine the frustration manager Scott Parker must be feeling.
One positive for teams over the busy festive period is that with so many games coming thick and fast, a good run of form can very quickly shoot you up the table. Unfortunately, with Leicester, Manchester City and Liverpool as their next three fixtures, things are not getting any easier.
Lose all three of those, as well they might, then Parker may be fearing the sack in the run up to Christmas.
Their best chance is to keep things tight, although that seems unlikely with Vardy and co. waiting.
Star Man – Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Only came on for the final half hour against Everton, but put in a top performance and got a goal to cap it off.
Leicester are likely to dominate from start to finish
2 or more goals likely in the match
Fulham must keep it tight for as long as possible
Leicester will see this as a huge chance to play their way back into form – depending on how other results go they could go joint top with a win.
They must be wary of a response from Fulham of course, with The Cottagers scoring twice last weekend for the first time this season, showing that they’re not totally blunt in front of goal.
But anything other than a comfortable Leicester victory is unlikely.
Leicester to win 3-0
