Young stars to get chance to shoot down Gunners tonight
SQUAD PLAYERS WILL GET THEIR CHANCE TO GO FOR IT AGAINST ARSENAL IN CUP
LEICESTER City youngsters will be given their chance to shine when the club hosts Arsenal in the Carabao Cup third round tonight (7.45pm kick-off).
With Europa League commitments ensuring City are in for a busy season, manager Brendan Rodgers has said changes will be made to his line-up, with academy graduates among those set to feature against Arsenal.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who made his senior debut last season and impressed in the summer friendlies, is pushing for a runout, with Luke Thomas and Josh Knight also in line for a place in the squad.
Less well-known names like Belgian forward Josh Eppiah and Portuguese midfielder Sidnei Tavares have also been training with the first team lately and could be included in a matchday squad for the first time.
“We want to do well in it, we want to be really competitive in it, the same idea as last season,” said Rodgers. “I think with the quick turnaround in pre-season, with the demands we have as a squad this season, and also having to get players up to speed physically, I will make changes, for sure.
“I also want to have a chance to have a look at some young players.
“Primarily, it’s a team we’ll send out to get through to the next round. I’m really looking forward to seeing the team play on Wednesday.
“We’ve got a lot of competitions we’re in, and we want to do well in them, and for that, it means I’ll have to use the squad.”
It won’t be solely young players who feature though.
While those that earned victories over West Brom and Burnley may get a night off, there are several senior stars who need pitch-time, including most notably James Maddison.
The attacking midfielder underwent hip surgery in July, and while he has made appearances off the bench in those opening pair of wins, he needs longer to get up to speed.
The likes of Hamza Choudhury, Kelechi Iheanacho, Demarai Gray, Wes Morgan, and Christian Fuchs could also be involved.
“(Maddison) will start on Wednesday,” Rodgers confirmed.
“He needs the minutes, he’s been out for a long time. It’s three months he’s been out and he’s only been training two weeks.
“We’ve got a really long season ahead of us. You can see that the period he was on (against Burnley) that he needs to get up to speed. That’s a process. He will definitely start on Wednesday.”
However, the fixture comes too soon for new signing Cengiz Under.
City are still awaiting his international clearance, and so he will not be eligible for the game.
A victory over the Gunners would earn a fourth round trip to Lincoln or Liverpool.