Antonio Conte’s men faced heartbreak in the Round of 16 of the Champions League this season at Camp Nou earlier this month but have a decent chance of tasting silverware, as they are still going strong in the FA Cup. The Blues beat Hull City and Norwich City in the last two rounds of the FA Cup and were drawn away from home to Leicester City in the quarterfinals of the competition.
The Foxes got the better of Peterborough and Sheffield United on their way to this clash and have every reason to believe that they can push Chelsea to the edge in the competition. They have not lost any of their last four games and beat West Brom 4-1 away from home last weekend and will be high on confidence going into this game.
Conte’s Chelsea beat Palace last weekend but are fresh from that demoralizing loss in Spain and could find it hard to focus. The Foxes were unlucky to drop all three points in the corresponding fixture in the domestic league earlier this season so both teams are sure to produce a high octane encounter this weekend.
With no replays at this stage of the competition, King Power will be a happening place and Chelsea will have to fight out a result on Sunday, even if it is via penalties if they are to qualify for the semi-finals of the FA Cup this season. It will be no easy feat for either side but that is the beauty of the competition and with the international break giving both teams a gap of two weeks before the next game, neither manager is expected to rest any of their key players.
Here is the team news, expected lineups, predictions and betting odds for this crunch clash:
Team News:
Leicester City:
In early team news, Claude Puel has no new injury issues to worry about ahead of this tie. Daniel Amartey is still out injured and remains the only casualty at the moment for the Foxes.
Expected lineup (4-4-1-1):
Schmeichel; Chilwell, Maguire, Morgan, Simpson; Albrighton, Iborra, Ndidi, Mahrez; Okazaki; Vardy
Chelsea:
Like Puel, Conte also does not have too many injuries in his squad for this weekend. Defender David Luiz remains out injured while Ross Barkley is yet to get back to full fitness and will be the only other player to miss this game for the Blues. Tiemoue Bakayoko is struggling with a niggle but might be available for selection.
Expected lineup (3-4-3):
Caballero; Cahill, Christensen, Azpilicueta; Alonso, Fabregas, Drinkwater, Zappacosta; Hazard, Willian, Morata
Betting Odds:
Leicester City – 5/2
Draw – 11/4
Chelsea – 11/10
Predictions:
Leicester City 2-1 Chelsea