After our success against Aston Villa last week, we return to the Midlands looking to rack up our 10th away league victory of the campaign on Saturday against Leicester City.
We’ve strung together three successive wins at the King Power Stadium over recent seasons; a ground where the Foxes haven’t enjoyed the best of times this term, winning just three of their 11 home league matches, including just one since October.
However, that did come via a 4-1 success over Tottenham Hotspur in their last fixture on their own patch, aided by key players returning to form and fitness plus some January recruitment. That combination has seen Brendan Rodgers’ side win three of their last five in all competitions as they look to recover from a wretched start.
Foxes looking over their shoulder
Just four points and positions separate Leicester from the relegation zone, where they have spent a large portion of the season after winning just once in their first 10 matches.
However they began to hit their stride in the autumn, picking up 16 of their 24 points to date in October and November before the World Cup break. That halted their momentum though, as just a solitary draw arrived from their first five games after the restart to once again leave them in danger.
That prompted Rodgers to dip into the January transfer market, with defenders Victor Kristiansen and Harry Soutar recruited alongside Tete in attack. They re-energised the side to record successive high-scoring victories over Aston Villa and Tottenham this month, before falling to a 3-0 defeat to an on-form Manchester United last weekend.
What the managers say
Arteta:Â “They’ve been really consistent the past few weeks in the games they’ve played. It’s true that Brendan has proposed very different games in many different moments throughout the seasons and they have this capacity to adapt, play different formations and play in different approaches.
“We have prepared for both because it’s possible and let’s see what they do tomorrow.” –Â read everything Mikel said in his pre-match press conference
Rodgers:Â “I think both teams want to play. That’s the identity and philosophy of both Mikel and myself. We want to create and score goals. I think we’ve shown that but, of course, you have to be mindful of the quality they have.
“Like in all the big games against top teams, you have to defend well, you have to be strong, do all the basics of the game well, track runners, be competitive, and then you have to believe in your football, believe that you can create and score goals. It should be a fantastic game.”