Leicester City
Why Leicester City are favorites in promotion race
Leicester City have been handed a major boost ahead of Monday’s clash away at Preston North End as head coach Enzo Maresca has confirmed that there are no injury concerns in the squad.
The Foxes are locked in a tense battle for promotion at the top of the table but could confirm promotion back to the Premier League tonight at the first time of asking should Leeds United suffer a defeat against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road.
After a downturn in form over the past two months, Maresca’s men are firmly back in the driving seat and now boast the best attacking output in the Championship and the second-best defensive record – a true hallmark of champions.
Now, the second-tier title is firmly in the hands of Leicester City. Four points from their remaining two matches away at Preston on Monday night and at home to Blackburn Rovers on the final day of the season should be enough to finish in first place.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of his side’s trip to Deepdale in three days, Maresca confirmed that he has a fully fit squad to choose from – something of a rarity at this stage in the season – as Ricardo Pereira, Marc Albrighton and Kasey McAteer are all back and ready for selection once more.
“They are all available,” the Italian coach said.
“Even Marc Albrighton, who was the only one with some problems, is back. Kasey [McAteer] is finally back. We gave him some minutes the other day so it’s good for the last two games hopefully.
“Ricky [Ricardo Pereira] is fine. The reason why he didn’t play against West Brom is because he had some problems a day before the game. There was not any reason why Hamza did not play against Southampton,” he continued.
“It’s just that sometimes you have to make a decision. Hamza’s performance against West Bromwich was fantastic. In the last game against Southampton, again, we decided to refresh him by changing with Hamza, but overall Ricky is fine.”
Writer’s View
It’s quite rare for a team not to have any injury problems at this stage in the campaign so this is a massive boost for Leicester City who will be looking to end the season as Championship title-winners and centurions.
These final two games won’t be easy fixtures for the Foxes, but with a fully fit squad, they will be expected to pick up six points from six and see off the likes of Leeds and Ipswich Town to be crowned champions.
