Last updated & checked: 10/08/2021
With eight consecutive wins under their belt in the league, Leicester come into this home game with struggling Norwich with high hopes of picking up another three points and maintaining some pressure on leaders Liverpool. In truth, winning this match would be as important for keeping distance between the Foxes and third-placed Manchester City as anything else. The biggest danger for Brendan Rodgers’ side may be complacency.
Norwich visit the East Midlands more in hope than expectation; a recent rally that saw them defeat Everton and hold Arsenal to a draw should be seen in light of the fact that one of those clubs had just sacked its manager, and the other was about to. Since then, defeats at Southampton and at home to Sheffield United have put the Canaries back in the worrying position of nineteenth, four points away from safety.
Leicester City vs Norwich City Prediction: Leicester City 3-1 Norwich City
Plenty of comparisons are being drawn between the current Leicester side and the one which won the Premier League in 2016, but there are signs that this one is in fact better. Fun though that title charge was, the Leicester team of that era depended on a deep-lying defence, surrendering possession and hitting on the break. This one can control possession and hit hard and fast in attack, meaning it can win even when the opposition masses its defences. Norwich, of course, are bringing Pukki to this party, so may find the net themselves, but the hosts should have more than enough to win.
Our recommended tip: Leicester >2.5 goals
There is no doubt that, in climbing to second in the table at what is now very close to the halfway mark in the season, Leicester have made the best of a less-than-challenging set of fixtures. Of the sides they have beaten in their current run, only Crystal Palace and Arsenal inhabit the top half of the table. That, however, isn’t something they need worry about here, because Norwich are very firmly ensconced in the bottom half and have one of the division’s weakest defences. It’s about to come up against Jamie Vardy, James Maddison and co. We’d consider BetVictor’s 5/6 on the hosts scoring more than 2.5 very kind odds.
Previous matches
When these sides met back in February 2016, Leicester were challenging for the title while Norwich fought against relegation. The fact that this is their first meeting since shows that only one of those sides got what they wanted that season. And it was the same side that won that game, at the King Power Stadium – although they made their fans wait, a last-ditch goal from substitute Leonardo Ulloa securing them the points to stretch their league lead to five points, and cause a literal earthquake (albeit a small one) in a corner of Leicester.
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Players to watch: Kelechi Iheanacho & Teemu Pukki
For the longest time, it appeared that Iheanacho’s £25million move to the East Midlands was going to be a let-down for both player and club. In 16 starts and 35 sub appearances across his first two seasons, he scored a total of four goals – and under Rodgers he seemed to be facing the even worse fate of being frozen out entirely. A goalscoring appearance off the bench against Everton, followed by a start and another goal at Villa Park last weekend, has enlivened the Nigerian international, and he seems a decent bet to start and score here.
If Norwich have been unsurprisingly erratic on their return to the Premier League, one thing that has been pleasantly surprising is the continued goalscoring of Teemu Pukki. The Finnish star has been prolific at international level too, firing his country to the finals of Euro 2020, and if there is any chance of the Canaries staying afloat in the Premier League this season, it has to come from the irrepressible penalty-area sharpness of the one-man party that is Pukki.
