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Brendan Rodgers' Leicester City host the defending champions Manchester City at the King Power Stadium this Saturday in what promises to be a mouth-watering encounter. The Foxes begin the weekend four points behind Pep Guardiola's men, and victory against the Cityzens could go a long way to securing Champions League football next season.
Leicester have seen a mixed bag of results as of late; one win in the Premier League since the start of 2020 and have gone winless in their last four matches. City has won four of their six league matches in 2020, defeating West Ham United 2-0 at home in midweek.
The last time these two sides faced off, Manchester City came away with a comprehensive 3-1 home victory with Riyaad Mahrez, Ilkay Guendogan and Gabriel Jesus all getting on the scoresheet. When these two sides last faced off at the King Power Stadium, Leicester won that fixture 2-1. The Foxes will desperately want to get back to winning ways - here are three players who could help Leicester City get the victory.
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#1 Jamie Vardy
The Englishman is the Premier League's top goalscorer with 17 goals. However, Vardy is currently experiencing his worst goal drought in three years. The Foxes striker has gone eight matches without scoring in all competitions.
Despite his current lack of form, Vardy has proved to be productive and efficient under Brendan Rodgers. Opposing teams will often create very few chances against City, therefore teams will need to make the most of every chance they get when they play against the defending champions. Luckily, Rodgers has the perfect player at his disposal to take advantage of those limited chances in Vardy.
The 33-year-old is being used purely to finish off moves for his team. When compared to his opposition counterpart, Sergio Aguero, Vardy will not be expected to drop deeper to help with the build-up play. City press as a unit high up the field, but that tends to afford plenty of space to be exploited in behind. Vardy is arguably the league's best at exploiting those circumstances considering how quick he is. He has already proven that when he opened the scoring against the Cityzens at the Etihad Stadium.
Very few chances tend to materialize because Manchester City will have the lion' share of the possession, therefore the chances have to be converted if Leicester is to defeat City on Saturday.
#2 James Maddison
Maddison has six goals and three assists in 25 Premier League matches this season. The attacking midfielder is a vital part of the Leicester team creatively. His intricate passing will be pivotal to breaking down a City defence boosted by the return of Aymeric Laporte.
Maddison will need to overcome a recent slump in form to help his side defeat the Cityzens. He has not scored in the league since netting in a 3-0 win against Newcastle United. His last Premier League assist came in a 4-1 victory away to Aston Villa in December. His form has coincided with Leicester's recent minor stumble.
When Tottenham Hotspur visited the King Power earlier in the season, Maddison led his side to a 2-0 victory over the Londoners. He scored a stunning strike that secured the points for The Foxes. A goalless draw against Wolves in the last league match proved that Brendan Rodgers' side can overcome physical mismatches in midfield. Maddison has completed as many tackles as he did last season, in 11 fewer matches.
His long-range shooting and ability from set-pieces will also prove to be vital to Leicester's success come Saturday evening. The Englishman has been Leicester's most sought-after asset due to his stellar performances this season. A big performance will surely go a long way to securing three points for his side at the King Power.
#3 Ricardo Pereira
The 26-year-old scored the decisive strike against the Cityzens to settle last season's meeting between the two sides at the King Power Stadium. Pereira has been in good form this season, with three goals and two assists in 25 appearances.
Pereira is a fierce attacking option for the Foxes, even when compared to the elite full-backs such as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson. He is a constant threat to opposition defenders with his skill and speed. Over the last two seasons, he is the only Premier League defender to have reached three figures for successful dribbles, while only Robertson and Wolves' Matt Doherty have had more touches inside the opposition box.
The defensive side of his game will be tested against the likes of Aguero, Raheem Sterling, and Riyaad Mahrez, but joining Leicester he has won more duels than any other Premier League defender. Only Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Jan Bednarek have made more interceptions. He also ranks first in tackles amongst defenders since the start of last season.
He will need to put in another stellar performance to help the Foxes come within four points of Manchester City come to the end of 90 minutes. Another goal against City wouldn't hurt either!
