Last time out, Leicester City succumbed to yet another defeat. A loss that would prove fatal for Marti Cufentes, as his tenure in the East Midlands came to an end. It was the Foxes’ 11th league defeat of the campaign, as the Spaniard left them in fourteenth place. Despite the turmoil, Andy King is now at the helm and will be hoping to bring a major turnaround in his time as interim manager. King has coached in Leicester since 2024 and is a beloved figure due to his presence in three different title-winning Leicester sides. Therefore, here is the Leicester Predicted Lineup as they play host to Charlton Athletic in King’s managerial debut.
Leicester Predicted Lineup vs Charlton Athletic for EFL Championship Clash
How Leicester City Have Lined Up Recently
In his final game in charge of City, Cifuentes once again made minimal alterations; a common occurrence during his reign. One area that hasn’t seen much change is in goal, as Polish keeper Jakub Stolarczyk still hasn’t ended the 23-game run without a clean sheet. In terms of centre-backs, Jannik Vestergaard and Caleb Okoli remain at the heart of the backline, whilst Ben Nelson tucked in at left-back. Luke Thomas’ mistakes seem to have finally caught up with him, as Cifuentes once again left him out of the starting lineup. On the right of the four was Ricardo Peiera, who was the first change from Wrexham, as Hamza Chouhdury moved into midfield.
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Due to injuries to both Oliver Skipp and Jordan James, the duo both missed out on the game against Oxford. The poor performance against the U’s could largely be attributed to the duo’s absences, as they have become pivotal in recent weeks. In their place came the aforementioned Choudhury and academy graduate Louis Page. Despite the changes in deeper areas, the front four was once again intact.
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Out wide, Stephy Mavdidi and Abdul Fatawu started, with the latter tallying his 13th goal contribution of the season. In the 10 was Bobby De Cordova-Reid, and just in front of him was fellow veteran Jordan Ayew, who led the line for the 29th time this season.
Leicester City’s Recent Form And Tactics
In terms of the last game, Leicester once again didn’t match the intensity from the off. They are one of the highest sides in the division for conceding goals in the first 15 minutes, and it shows. A long throw wasn’t dealt with, and after just four minutes, defender Sam Long had given his team the lead. It was a trademark performance from a squad desperately looking to stay in the division. Despite having just 23% possesion in the first half, they created an XG of 0.72 and limited City to just one shot on target. The blueprint to beat this Leicester side has never been more evident.
The second half saw little change, as they still looked vulnerable defensively. As they poured more players up the pitch, every time they failed to break down the visitors, they were in trouble on the transition. Of course, this led to a second for the U’s as Mark Harris broke away and swept aside Stolarczyk to double his side’s lead. A late consolation goal did come via Fatawu, as he continues to produce glimpses of magic during dismal performances.
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There was little surprise for any supporters when the news came through that City were parting ways with Cifuentes. The person perhaps most perplexed by the news was Chairman Khun Top, as earlier that day he backed the Spaniard. He said: “We can see he’s doing well, he should be doing well, and he needs time to do it” The running of the football club has been a mess for years now, and Cifuentes is the latest coach to deal with tough external circumstances. No permanent signings. players who don’t want to be there, all whilst navigating a ultra-compeititve 46-game season.
However, this isn’t to say the Spaniard didn’t have his flaws. The tactics weren’t good enough, as areas such as pressing and directness were quickly forgotten about. In addition to this, the rare use of academy players was also baffling, as senior players such as Wout Faes and Harry Winks showed little interest in the project. Whether the next manager can turn the tide isn’t clear yet, but if a points deduction does come, then City could be in trouble.
Leicester City Team News
As confirmed by King, absences are an expectation heading into this Championship fixture. As mentioned prior, James remains out and isn’t back for several weeks. In addition to this, Skipp also isn’t available due to concussion protocols. Long-term absentees include Aaron Ramsey, Harry Souttar and Victor Kristiansen, although the latter is back training.
The scarcity of defenders has even led to under-21 centre-back Kevon Gray recently making the step up to the first team bench. With injuries affecting the squad, and King now in the hot seat, could City supporters see more and more youngsters involved?
Leicester Predicted Lineup vs Charlton Athletic
GK: Jakub Stolarczyk
RB: Ricardo Pereira
RCB: Caleb Okoli
LCB: Ben Nelson
LB: Luke Thomas
DM: Hamza Choudhury
DM: Louis Page
RW: Abdul Fatawu
AM: Bobby De Cordova-Reid
LW: Stephy Mavididi
ST: Jordan Ayew
