Leicester City continue their search for a first Premier League victory of the 2024/25 season this weekend when they host Bournemouth at the King Power Stadium.
Steve Cooper already finds himself under enormous pressure in the Leicester dugout as performances and results underwhelm. The Foxes were minutes away from a stunning smash and grab at Arsenal last weekend as they came from two goals down thanks to a James Justin brace, but late heartbreak means they remain 17th in the table after six games.
Bournemouth have not made a flawless start to the campaign but have a symmetrical record of having won two, drawn two and lost two from their opening matches. Their 3-1 victory over Southampton last Monday has propelled them up the table and into 11th, with record summer signing Evanilson opening his account against the Saints.
Here is 90min’s guide to an intriguing clash in the East Midlands.
Leicester vs Bournemouth H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Leicester |
Bournemouth |
|---|---|
|
Arsenal 4-2 Leicester – 28/09/24 |
Bournemouth 3-1 Southampton – 30/09/24 |
|
Walsall 0-0 (0-3p) Leicester – 24/09/24 |
Liverpool 3-0 Bournemouth – 21/09/24 |
|
Leicester 1-1 Everton – 21/09/24 |
Bournemouth 0-1 Chelsea – 14/09/24 |
|
Crystal Palace 2-2 Leicester – 14/09/24 |
Everton 2-3 Bournemouth – 31/08/24 |
|
Leicester 1-2 Aston Villa – 31/08/24 |
West Ham 1-0 Bournemouth – 28/08/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
N/A |
|
United States |
Peacock |
|
Canada |
fuboTV Canada, Fubo Sports Network 6 Canada |
Cooper is guaranteed to be without Patson Daka, Hamza Choudhury and Jakub Stolarczyk for Saturday’s affair, while Jannik Vestergaard remains a doubt as he recovers from injury.
Jamie Vardy will continue to lead the line for Leicester and will be joined in the final third by Stephy Mavididi and Facundo Buonanotte. Summer signing Bilal El Khannous may play in the number 10 position behind the 37-year-old.
Caleb Okoli is likely to continue in the back four alongside Wout Faes, while Justin has earned himself another start with a brace last weekend. Wilfred Ndidi may drop deeper into the midfield, with Oliver Skipp perhaps moving to the bench.
Leicester predicted lineup vs Bournemouth (4-2-3-1): Hermansen; Justin, Faes, Okoli, Kristiansen; Winks, Ndidi; Buonanotte, El Khannous, Mavididi; Vardy.
Tyler Adams is the only absentee for Andoni Iraola who takes a strong squad to the King Power. He’s unlikely to change too much from the victory over Southampton.
After scoring his first Cherries goal in the win over the Saints, Evanilson will be desperate to build on his tally against a shaky defence. Marcus Tavernier and Antoine Semenyo are in terrific form in the forward line, too.
Julian Araujo could return at right-back in place of Adam Smith, while Justin Kluivert will be competing with Monday night goalscorer Dango Ouattara for a starting berth.
Bournemouth predicted lineup vs Leicester (4-2-3-1): Kepa; Araujo, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Kerkez; Christie, Cook; Semenyo, Tavernier, Ouattara; Evanilson.
Leicester‘s wait for a Premier League victory may go on after this weekend, with a tricky home clash against Bournemouth perhaps another nail in Cooper’s coffin.
The Foxes are yet to keep a clean sheet this season and come up against a Bournemouth side who have scored six in their last two meetings with bottom-half Premier League sides. After Monday’s victory, their attackers will be in confident mood.
However, the biggest issue for Leicester remains in the final third. They managed two goals from an expected goals tally of just 0.21 last weekend – hardly sustainable numbers – and have often proved frustrating when building attacks. They may draw a blank here.
