Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur – FA Cup – Preview

Posted on January 20, 2016 by Sreya

Leicester City will host Tottenham Hotspur at the King Power Stadium on Wednesday, 20th January for a replay of their third round FA Cup tie after the previous meeting at White Hart Lane ended in a 2-2 stalemate. This will be the third meeting in January between these two clubs – Leicester defeated Tottenham 1-0 in a Premier League fixture three days after their FA Cup game.

Although the Foxes will start as favorites courtesy their win over Spurs in the last match and home advantage, Maurio Pochettino’s side has been one of the best teams in England this season and will offer a substantial challenge.

Christian Eriksen gave Tottenham the lead within the first ten minutes, but Marcin Wasilewski equalized soon after with a well-placed header. Shinji Okazaki’s goal in the second half seemed to have sent Leicester City into the fourth round, but a late penalty from Harry Kane ensured the tie goes into the second leg.

Team News

Leicester City midfielder Matthew James could return to the squad tonight after spending eight months in the recovery room. Jeffrey Schlupp continues to remain absent due to his hamstring injury though. Ryan Mason (ankle), Clinton N’jie (knee) and Alex Pritchard (hamstring) remain sidelined for the visitors but there are no fresh injury concerns for Spurs.

Thoughts From Both Camps

“We wanted to win the first leg. It was not possible. They drew the game in the end with that penalty. Of course I wanted to win but now I have another chance to give my players a chance to show their skills, their ability, their strength and how they are working.”

– Claudio Ranieri, Leicester City.

“We’ve positive momentum after the win against Sunderland and we’re looking to take that into the replay at Leicester. Leicester defend so well as a team. They have players who work hard, players with experience and you have to find a solution to break them down.”

– Joshua Onomah, Tottenham Hotspur.

Contributor’s Pick

According to Head-2-Head statistics, in twelve FA Cup meetings including one replay, Spurs have seven wins as compared to the Foxes’ three victories. This is the second successive wins when these two clubs are facing each other in the FA Cup – Leicester City won 2-1 last season at White Hart Lane.

While Leicester City have lost just once in the last fourteen matches at home in all competitions, Tottenham have not lost away from home in all competitions since the opening day of the season. It should be an intriguing contest, with Leicester City likely to win by a 1-0 margin.