Two teams still in search of their first win of the new Premier League season square off on Saturday as Leicester City host Southampton.
Leicester City have struggled to find their rhythm at the start of the season and have failed to secure a win in their opening two matches. They began with a 2-2 draw with Brentford before falling to a 4-2 defeat at Arsenal in their previous fixture.
Both results showed a serious vulnerability at the back for Leicester City and their problems are not helped by the distraction of Chelsea's pursuit of defender Wesley Fofana. One positive for manager Brendan Rodgers is that the Foxes have shown they can mix it up at the other end of the pitch having scored twice in each of their matches.
Leicester City have won five of their last eight home matches. Among their results in that run is a 4-1 victory over Southampton in their final home game of last season.
Southampton travel to Leicester off the back of a 2-2 home draw with Leeds United in their previous Premier League fixture. They fought back from two goals down with efforts from Joe Aribo and Kyle Walker-Peters earning them a share of the spoils.
A 4-1 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur in their opening fixture means Southampton have had an identical start to the season as Leicester. However, there appears to be an ominous cloud around Ralph Hassenhuttl’s men this term as they look likely to have a difficult campaign.
One of the reasons for the low expectation around Southampton is that their results this term are an extension of last season’s struggles. They have now claimed just one win from their last 14 Premier League matches, suffering 10 defeats in that run.
How the bookies view it
Leicester City have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 9/10 by SBK to claim the win. A victory for Southampton is valued at 3/1 with Unibet while a draw is also set at odds of 3/1 with bet365.
Recent head to head
Leicester City have a good record in this fixture and are unbeaten in their last five matches against Southampton. The Foxes have also won the last three meetings at the King Power Stadium, including a 4-1 victory back in May.
Players to watch
Striker Jamie Vardy is yet to get off the mark for Leicester City this season but is still a major goal threat and could be backed to get on the score sheet at 13/10 with bet365.
Midfielder James Maddison was on target last time out and having scored in his last two matches against Southampton, could be worth keeping an eye on at 12/5 with bet365.
James Ward-Prowse has two goals in his last three matches against Leicester City and given his threat from set pieces, could be tipped to score at 4/1 with bet365. Summer signing Joe Aribo also has an eye for goal and is priced at 11/2 by Unibet to find the net on Saturday.
Anything else catch the eye?
Leicester City and Southampton have produced over 3.5 goals in their last two meetings and given their defensive problems this season, a similar outcome could be considered at 8/5 with Unibet. The Foxes scored in both halves in the two meetings last season and could be set for a repeat at 13/8 with BoyleSports.
Both teams have scored in two of their last three meetings and Saturday’ clash is likely to follow a similar pattern at 15/8 with Paddy Power.
This English Premier League match between Leicester City and Southampton will be played on Aug 20, 2022 and kick off at 15:00. Check below for our tipsters best Leicester City vs Southampton prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
