Last updated & checked: 10/08/2021
A Leicester side unbeaten in six games welcomes sort-of rivals Tottenham to the King Power for an intriguing Saturday night game. Spurs were the side who ran the Foxes closest for the 2016 Premier League title (before falling away and eventually finishing third), and since then there has been a certain antipathy between the clubs. While the hosts sit ninth in the table, their opponents here today are third and trying to stay in touch with the leaders.
While City are proving tough to beat, they’re not managing to win many games – of the six-game unbeaten spell, the only wins have come over Cardiff and Watford. Winnable home games against Burnley and West Ham have seen them take single points each time. Here, they will face a genuine test, and may be facing it without their entire first-choice central defence. Can a weakened Leicester hold off the firepower of Kane & co.?
Leicester City vs Tottenham Prediction: Leicester City 2-2 Tottenham
While Leicester fans will be frustrated with the points total taken across a spell of six games against sides currently below them in the league, there is a solidity to this Foxes side that has made them hard to put away. Tottenham will come into this game as favourites, of that there is no doubt. They will find, though, that their opponents keep battling for 90 minutes, and always seem to find a way to score. The hosts are more likely to fire if Jamie Vardy is available to play, something that remains in question, but there are goals throughout the team.
Our recommended tip: Kane scores 2+
Up against a Fulham side with a relatively limited attack, Leicester’s makeshift defensive partnership of Wes Morgan and Caglar Soyuncu looked ragged at times. A mistake from the latter in his first Premier League start allowed the Cottagers to open the scoring. With Harry Maguire out, and Jonny Evans doubtful for this encounter, the same partnership may be picked again. Unless they’re much sharper here, the presence of Harry Kane in the Spurs ranks could spell bad news for Claude Puel’s men. Ladbrokes have an appealing 13/5 (3.60) on the England man scoring more than once here.
Previous matches
Neutral viewers would be more than happy with a repeat of the last game between these sides. On the last day of the 2017/18 season, with neither side in a position to climb any higher in the league, they shared nine goals as Spurs won 5-4 at Wembley. Kane, Vardy and Erik Lamela each plundered a brace as the home side came back from 3-1 down.
City, meanwhile, won the last time Spurs visited the East Midlands. First-half goals from Vardy and Riyad Mahrez gave Puel’s side a 2-0 lead as they continued a fine start to his reign, and a late Kane goal did not trigger the fightback Tottenham were looking for.
Top 3 Premier League Bookies
Players to watch: Wes Morgan & Harry Kane
Morgan was the captain, and an indispensable part, of the Leicester setup as they won the title in 2016 – indeed, he played every minute of every game – but as errors have begun to creep into his game, the Foxes have looked to move on to other options. It’s felt that Puel’s first-choice partnership is Maguire and Evans but with both injured, and Filip Benkovic on loan at Celtic, the Jamaican international is required to step in. On his day, he’s indomitable; Puel will hope that the likeable Morgan is on form tonight.
There is little that can be said about Harry Kane that hasn’t already been said too many times. The best pure striker in the Premier League, Kane is more familiar than most visitors with the King Power turf, as he spent a while here on loan. Up against a few former teammates, it would be naive to expect sentiment to affect him here. He’s scored seven goals in his last three games against Leicester, five of those coming at this stadium.
