A Leicester City side dreaming of another historic Premier League title play host to a Chelsea side aiming to get their top-four charge back on track on Tuesday evening.
Both teams triumphed and kept clean sheets at the weekend, with Leicester overcoming Southampton 2-0 while Chelsea took the spoils in a 1-0 win at Fulham in the West London derby.
Match preview
© Reuters
After a truly dominant performance against Championship outfit Stoke City in the FA Cup, Leicester prepared for a much tougher battle when they welcomed a European-chasing Southampton side to the King Power on Saturday.
The Foxes did not have it all their own way and it was a frustrating night for Jamie Vardy in particular, but James Maddison rifled home in the first half before the ever-impressive Harvey Barnes wrapped up the three points in the dying embers of the match.
Tuesday's hosts leapfrogged reigning champions Liverpool into second with that victory and remain above them after their draw with Manchester United, but the Foxes ultimately dropped to third as Manchester City cruised past Crystal Palace, although a win here would see Brendan Rodgers's men reach the summit for at least 24 hours.
Saturday's triumph on home soil represented Leicester's third win on the bounce in all competitions and maintained their 100% start to 2021, with Rodgers now overseeing a six-game unbeaten run as the Foxes display their title credentials.
However, it is Leicester's form on the road which has propelled them into title contention this season, as they have only tasted victory in three of their last eight top-flight home matches before facing a Chelsea side with a point to prove.
© Reuters
Chelsea's performance against a relegation-threatened and 10-man Fulham would not have eased most of the pressure on Frank Lampard's shoulders, but the Blues eventually got over the line in a hotly-contested London derby.
The effervescent Mason Mount bagged the decisive goal in the 78th minute as Chelsea ended a three-game winless run in the Premier League, as well as avoiding a fourth-straight league defeat on the road.
Lampard's crop had made the journey back from Everton, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal with zero points to their name, but the top-four race is very much open and Chelsea are very much still in the mix despite their below-par results and performances.
However, the Blues remain four points off the Champions League places after Man City and Tottenham Hotspur both took maximum points at the weekend, and the Blues also have Everton - who remain three above with a game in hand - to worry about in their bid for a top-four finish.
Chelsea have only suffered one defeat in their last 12 games across all competitions with Leicester, who most recently beat the Blues at home during their triumphant 2015-16 campaign.
Leicester City Premier League form: WLWDDW
Leicester City form (all competitions): WDDWWW
Chelsea Premier League form: LWLDLW
Chelsea form (all competitions): WLDLWW
Team News
© Reuters
Leicester stalwart Vardy limped off in the final few minutes against Southampton with a hip problem, but Rodgers has expressed optimism over his availability for the visit of Chelsea as he looks to add to his strong scoring record against the big six.
Vardy's expected return would leave Dennis Praet as the hosts' only confirmed absentee through injury, with Ricardo Pereira making the squad for the first time in the Premier League this season on Saturday.
However, James Justin and Timothy Castagne should reprise their regular roles in the defence, and even though Wesley Fofana picked up a yellow card before being hauled off in the 53rd minute against Southampton, he is expected to line up alongside Jonny Evans once more.
Chelsea defenders Reece James and Andreas Christensen are both back in the fold following injuries, but N'Golo Kante continues to nurse a hamstring problem and will miss out this week.
James should come back in for the veteran Cesar Azpilicueta at right-back, and Christensen may not earn a recall to the defence, but Kurt Zouma is expected to despite Antonio Rudiger's assured performance against Fulham.
Jorginho did not enjoy the best of evenings at Fulham and Lampard could opt to bring Billy Gilmour in with Kante sidelined, while Tammy Abraham will hope to earn a start over Olivier Giroud for this crunch match.
Lampard may not want to risk Christian Pulisic from the first whistle again given his injury woes, and the Blues manager admitted that Callum Hudson-Odoi deserved to start against Fulham, so the young Englishman could return here.
Leicester City possible starting lineup:
Schmeichel; Castagne, Fofana, Evans, Justin; Ndidi, Tielemans; Albrighton, Maddison, Barnes; Vardy
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Mendy; James, Zouma, Silva, Chilwell; Gilmour, Kovacic, Mount; Ziyech, Abraham, Hudson-Odoi
We say: Leicester City 2-1 Chelsea
Leicester have failed to produce the goods at home on a consistent basis this term, but unlike the visiting party, Rodgers's men are simply brimming with confidence. Chelsea's narrow victory over Fulham was of paramount importance, but with Lampard still struggling to get the best out of his players, we can envisage Leicester coming up trumps in this mouthwatering battle.
Top betting tip
Video prediction
Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:
Ben Knapton
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Chelsea win with a probability of 41.73%. A win for Leicester City had a probability of 32.51% and a draw had a probability of 25.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Chelsea win was 0-1 with a probability of 9.84%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.82%) and 0-2 (7.1%). The likeliest Leicester City win was 1-0 (8.48%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.22%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 5.3% likelihood.
