Chelsea out to muzzle Foxes
Several bookmakers suspended betting on Antonio Conte being fired as Chelsea manager the last time the Italian’ s side played compatriot Cl audio Ranieri’s Leicester City in the Premier League.
The run-up to that October clash at Stamford Bridge now sounds like an echo from another era for both managers as they prepare for what should be another lively eveningat King Power Stadium on Saturday.
Three months ago, Chelsea sat seventh in the standings with 13 points from four wins, a draw and two defeats and the Blues boss found himself on the defensive, trying to make light of all the speculation.
A supportive Ranieri ventured to suggest that Chelsea, the side he once managed, was still likely to finish in the top four.
Now, Conte arrives at what was once a fortress for the Foxes, cushioned by a fivepoint lead over Liverpool at the top of the standings and a run of 13 straight league wins ended only this month by Tottenham Hotspur.
Conte, whose side hammered Leicester 3-0 in that Oct 15 battle of the last two champions after also beating the Foxes 4-2 in the League Cup third round in September,is now up for a hat-trick of wins over Ranieri’s struggling side.
Chelsea is also the clear favorite to reclaim the title taken from it last season.
Leicester, which was 12th in October with just two wins from seven league games, is now 15th and six points off the drop zone, with only three more victories over the intervening three months.
The Foxes are also without African Player of the Year Riyad Mahrez and Islam Slimani, both on African Nations Cup duty with Algeria, and Ghana midfielder Daniel Amartey.
The odds on Ranieri being the Premier League’s next managerial casualty are now 25/1 on SkyBet, with Conte the least likely at 150/1, along with Tottenham Hotspur’s Mauricio Pochettino and Liverpool’s Juergen Klopp.
Saturday’s match will also mark a return for N’Golo Kante, Leicester’s midfield motor last season who has played an equally impressive and important role since switching to Stamford Bridge.
Tottenham is at home to West Bromwich Albion in Saturday’s afternoon game and can climb to second, at least temporarily, if it chalks up its sixth league win in a row.
Liverpool, which has posted victories in 12 of its past 18 Premier League games but was held 2-2 at lowly Sunderland in its last match, travels the short distance to Manchester United on Sunday in the weekend’s showcase.
Fourth-place Manchester City is at Everton on Sunday while Arsenal, fifth, travels to lowly Swansea City.
Meanwhile, ex-England manager Sam Allardyce continues his trip down memory lane with struggling Crystal Palace when it takes on his former side, West Ham United.
Palace, which has picked up only one point since Allardyce replaced Alan Pardew last month, played another of the manager’s old clubs, Bolton Wanderers, in the third round of the FA Cup last week, with the replay scheduled for Selhurst Park on Tuesday.