Both of these sides should have been challenging for a top six place according to pre-season expectations, yet as it turns out both are struggling at the wrong end of the table. The bad starts means that both have already experienced a change in manager and with Leicester sat in 18th and Sheffield United in 21st, you could describe this as something of a relegation clash.
After a dreadful start to the campaign, it looks as though Leicester are turning their season around and Sven-Goran Eriksson’s men are slowly climbing up the table. When Eriksson took over the Foxes were firmly rooted in the bottom three but things have improved in recent weeks and they come into this game having won four from their last six. Those results now mean that they sit in 18th place on eighteen points although you’d have to imagine that the aim for this season is to make a serious push for the playoffs. Some of the players that Eriksson has brought in wouldn’t look out of place in the Premiership and with that, we can only expect a bright future for the Walkers Stadium outfit.
It’s a completely different story for Sheffield United though who are having an absolutely torrid campaign. While the appointment of Eriksson at Leicester evoked a turnaround there, the same can’t be said about Gary Speed at Bramall Lane. Since taking over just a few games into the season the Blades have seen no improvement and in fact look every bit more like a relegation-threatened side by the week. They head into this game on the back of three defeats and should results go against them, they could find themselves in the bottom three by full time. Their main problem is their lack of goals and despite investing heavily in strikers over the past two years, United have just ten goals to their name this term which is the worst in the division by quite some margin.
As for team news, Leicester may include Matt Oakley for this one after the midfielder was forced to miss their last game with a knee injury. There is a small doubt on Saturday’s goal scorer Miguel Vitor, but the defender should shake off a knee problem and keep his place in the squad. Sheffield United could be missing two players though as Andy Reid and Stephen Jordan both struggle with injuries. Both are suffering with hamstring problems and a late decision will be made on whether or not they can feature.
Our prediction can only go for a home win, with Leicester in excellent form while Sheffield United don’t know where their next goal is going to come from
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