High-flying Leicester travel to Goodison Park on Saturday looking to maintain some distance between themselves and the chasing pack at the top.
What praise has not been heaped on the Foxes this season? Their form has been simply stellar, two points ahead of second-placed Arsenal at the summit of the Premier League table with 10 wins to their name, equal with the Gunners and free-spending Manchester City.
Claudio Ranieri has his troops playing delightful football, led by record-breaker Jamie Vardy and tricky attacker Riyad Mahrez. The most recent victims of the hungry Foxes were reigning-yet-battered champions Chelsea, who suffered a 2-1 loss at the King Power Stadium thanks to some neat play from the aforementioned forward duo.
After taking points from Manchester United and the champions, their next assignment is another potentially tricky one: Goodison Park.
The old stadium can be a torrid place for visiting teams, but in the current climate, it is likely to be a place on-edge come Saturday. Everton have drawn three games in a row, all of which could have – and probably should have – been wins.
A profligate display in a dominant first half against Norwich saw the Toffees escape Norfolk with only a point after the Canaries stormed back into the contest post the interval.
Those poor results see Everton lying in a paltry 10th and tasks do not get much tougher than the visit of the flying Foxes.
Key Battle – Romelu Lukaku and Gerard Deulofeu vs Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez
Compare the pairs. Two strikers. Two wingers. All in-form.
This duo duel picks itself. Both pairs are in career-best form and it would not be remiss to label each as the best attacking tag-teams in the Premier League.
Vardy has 15 league goals in just 16 games, including a well documented and aptly celebrated 12 in consecutive matches, enough to obliterate Ruud van Nistelrooy’s long-standing record.
Lukaku is not far behind Vardy with 12 goals and four assists.
Incredibly, Mahrez, being more of a creator, is only one strike behind Lukaku with an additional seven assists.
For the latter stat, Mahrez enjoys the second-best record in the league, ironically shared with Everton compatriot Gerard Deulofeu. Of the little Spaniard’s seven league assists, six have fallen to the feet of Lukaku.
Whichever duet can fire or indeed be more prolific than the other will go a huge distance in deciding which club claims victory.
Team News
Roberto Martinez will likely maintain the same team that drew at Norwich. Tom Cleverley excelled in place of the injured James McCarthy and should maintain his starting berth. The man he replaced is unlikely to be fit in time for the match.
Leicester have a short injury list though Danny Drinkwater is likely to drop out of the squad after suffering a hamstring injury against Chelsea. Andy King replaced him on the night and could step into to fill the void from the beginning. Aside from that, do not expect any changes from the Tinkerman.
Head-to-Head
This fixture has been contested 93 times in all competitions. Everton shade the ledger with 34 versus the Foxes’ 29 but draws have dominated its history, in which there have been 30.
Previous Meeting
The last time these sides met, Everton were in something of a rut. At Goodison Park, the home side took the lead through Steven Naismith in the 57th minute only to concede twice in seven minutes to fall 2-1 behind. The Blues’ blushes were spared by an 88th-minute Matthew Upson own goal.
Prediction
This match will be decided in the opening half and it could be game over by the time the half time whistle blows. To bring down a side sky-high on confidence, quality and table position, Everton must take control early and convert into goals. If Leicester can assume the early ascendancy, hit the scoreboard and silence the crowd, it could be a difficult afternoon for the hosts.
Everton 1 Leicester City 2
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