Leicester City have made a swift return to the Premier League after their relegation, but they face a new challenge with the departure of Enzo Maresca, who guided them to promotion. Maresca has taken the reins at Chelsea, and Leicester have brought in Steve Cooper as his replacement. Cooper, who previously revitalized Nottingham Forest and led them to Premier League survival, now takes on a similar task at Leicester.
However, Leicester's return to the top flight begins with a daunting test against a Tottenham Hotspur side that has had a strong summer of recruitment.
Spurs have bolstered their squad with the signings of Archie Gray from Leeds United and Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth, the latter becoming their record signing. They will, however, be without the influential Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, who has been in their midfield since 2020, amassing 145 appearances for the club.
Leicester have made some key moves of their own, most notably securing the permanent signing of Issahaku Fatawu from Sporting Lisbon. Fatawu was instrumental in their Championship title win last season, featuring in 40 games. Yet, they have suffered a significant blow with the departure of academy graduate Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who has followed Maresca to Chelsea in a £30 million deal.
Tottenham, under Ange Postecoglou, narrowly missed out on a Champions League spot last season, finishing 5th, just two points behind Aston Villa. Postecoglou's dynamic and unpredictable style of play earned him widespread acclaim, especially after a memorable match against Chelsea where Spurs maintained a high line despite being reduced to nine men. This season presents an opportunity for Postecoglou to build on that success, further demonstrating his tactical prowess and adaptability.
Head2Head
Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur last met in February 2023 at the King Power Stadium, where Leicester secured a resounding 4-1 victory under Brendan Rodgers. Goals from Nampalys Mendy, James Maddison, Kelechi Iheanacho, and Harvey Barnes overturned an early opener from Rodrigo Bentancur.
Historically, Spurs have had the upper hand in this fixture, winning 61 of the 120 encounters, while Leicester have triumphed 38 times, with 21 matches ending in draws.
Tottenham’s most recent victory came in 2022 when Heung-Min Son netted a hat-trick in a 6-2 win.
Team News
Leicester will be without club legend Jamie Vardy, who sustained an ankle injury in their pre-season match against Villarreal and is expected to miss the early part of the season.
Additionally, Connor Coady is sidelined until mid-September after suffering an injury in training.
Patson Daka also picked up a knock in Leicester's final pre-season friendly against Lens, leaving them without two of their first-team strikers.
In response, Steve Cooper has been actively seeking new signings ahead of the match. One of those signings is Facundo Buonanotte, who joins on loan from Brighton. The 23-year-old could play a crucial role in filling the attacking void left by Vardy and Daka.
Tottenham will be without Yves Bissouma, who has been suspended for Monday’s game following the emergence of a social media video showing him inhaling laughing gas.
Manager Ange Postecoglou addressed the situation, stating, “He needs to rebuild trust with both me and the team. The door is open for him, but his behavior will be key.”
On a brighter note, Richarlison returns to full fitness after missing all of pre-season, though his minutes will be carefully managed.
Aside from Bissouma's suspension, Spurs have no major injury concerns, and new signings Dominic Solanke, Archie Gray, and Lucas Bergvall are all expected to feature.
The primary selection dilemma for Postecoglou lies in midfield, where he must choose between Rodrigo Bentancur and new arrival Archie Gray to partner with Pape Sarr.
• Predicted Line-Ups
Leicester City: Hermansen, Kristiansen, Okoli, Faes, Justin, Winks, Ndidi, Buonanotte, Fatawu, Mavididi, De Cordova Reid
Tottenham Hotspur : Vicario, Udogie, Romero, Van der Ven, Porro, Maddison, Gray, Sarr, Son, Solanke, Kulusevski
Players to watch
Leicester- Stephy Mavididi
At 26 year of age Mavididi comes into the Premier League off of the back of a very successful debut season with Leicester where he got 12 goals in 46 appearances.
This included picking up the Championship player of the month award in December 2023.
He joined the club from Montpellier where he overtook Chris Waddle as the English player with the most appearances in Ligue 1.
The player came through Arsenal’s youth system and can play either at striker or on the wing.
His versatility offers Leicester's manager, Steve Cooper, multiple options in how he can deploy Mavididi, whether as a central striker, where his sharp finishing can be fully utilized, or as a winger, where his pace and ability to take on defenders one-on-one can stretch the play.
Tottenham Hotspur- Dominic Solanke
Solanke joins the club for a club record fee of a reported £65 million making it his third team that he has played for in the traditional ‘big six’ sides after previously being at Cheslea and Liverpool.
For Bournemouth last season he was the vocal point in the side getting 19 goals for the side as they finished 12th in the league.
At 6ft 2 Solanke is a tall pressing striker who has great finishing ability.
He was part of the side that won the under 20’s World Cup in 2017 band he picked up the Golden ball which saw him move to Liverpool following his contract expiring at Chelsea.
When and how to watch Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur
The game will be live on Sky Sports with the game kicking off at 19:45pm in the UK and will be shown on relevant USA channels.