Leicester

Owynn Palmer-Atkin
BBC Radio Leicester reporter

Image source, Getty Images

On Thursday, BBC Radio Leicester's Owynn Palmer-Atkin has been answering your questions about Leicester City.

Britney asked: What is a small win that Steve Cooper could make to get the sceptics back on board with his decisions?

Owynn answered: My initial thought was to play Ricardo Pereira as an inverted midfielder and field two wingers,- similar to last season under Enzo Maresca.

However, with Ricardo picking up another injury and news to come on Thursday as to how long both Abdul Fatawu and Jordan Ayew are out for, that could be difficult.

Perhaps now though, during this international break, it might have been time for Cooper to look at changing formation.

At Southampton, playing three at the back worked and we saw some real attacking play that got fans out of their seats in the second half.

Could now be the time to switch? Would that help fix the leaky defence? How does the rest of the formation line up? Do they go with two strikers or two number 10s?

These are all questions that Steve Cooper and his staff are asking, I'm sure.

I have mentioned Will Alves before as well, with Foxes fans clamouring to see him play more. As an attacking threat off the bench, I think he is worth a shot and he can definitely add something different.

See how Leicester get on in their first game back after the international break and listen to every Foxes match, home and away, on BBC Radio Leicester.

Henry Brownsey
BBC Sport journalist

Leicester City boss Steve Cooper has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Chelsea (kick-off 12:30 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Abdul Fatawu was injured on international duty with Ghana and Cooper said it is "not good - a serious ACL [anterior cruciate ligament] injury that's going to rule him out for the rest of the season. A real blow."

• He said the 20-year-old needs to be supported so his rehab and return is "as smooth as possible" to come back "as a stronger player and person."

• Cooper believes Ricardo Pereira "will be a good ally in the medical room" after the Portuguese defender suffered a similar injury previously.

• Forward Jordan Ayew also came back injured from international duty but Cooper said "it's not a serious injury and the hope is he may be available for the weekend".

• In more positive news, Patson Daka is available for Saturday's game and Jamie Vardy has been having modified training. Cooper will judge where he is at before the game.

• Finally on team news, Bobby De Cordova-Reid is making progress in recovering from a cut sustained against Manchester United in the Carabao Cup: " [He] has been back on the training pitch. The hope is that he reports today and the cut doesn't open again."

• Cooper believes the injuries mean it's "a real opportunity to bring us closer together and show who we really are."

• On Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, who led the Foxes to promotion last season: "Enzo did a brilliant job getting the club back to the Premier League. He's gone on and had a more than strong start at Chelsea. We know we're coming up against a talented team with a really good coach. It's a game which is a real test but one we need to embrace and be ready for."

• Cooper was passionate about Leicester's position in the Premier League: "I knew how hard this challenge was going to be on and off the pitch this year. It has proven to be exactly that. We're fully aware of the environment we're in."

• He was therefore quite reflective on the season so far: "When you look back, it's been a bit of everything. There's been some decent results and then the opposite of that. We always want more. The league position is OK and if it stayed like this, a lot of people would be satisfied, but I want more."

Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Owynn Palmer-Atkin
BBC Radio Leicester reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Leicester City expert Owynn Palmer-Atkin has been taking your questions and we'll be running his answers throughout Thursday.

Ned asked: It's the end of the season and we have stayed up - should we continue with our previous transfers strategy and sell a top player? Who is most likely to be sold and how much would you accept for them?

Owynn answered: It is a strategy that I think the club have to stick to, in order to raise the necessary funds to invest at the level required.

However, it was pretty obvious who those top players were over the last few seasons - Wesley Fofana, James Maddison, Harvey Barnes and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall have brought in around £200m to Leicester City alone.

But who is the next big money, sellable asset?

Both Wilfred Ndidi and Abdul Fatawu hold big value to Leicester City - they are both on new contracts which helps to add an insurance for the club. Ndidi has bags of Premier League experience, while Fatawu is an exciting young winger with explosive abilities.

But, for me, that next big sale could come in the form of Mads Hermansen.

The desire and need for a goalkeeper to be able to be comfortable on the ball, be able to play forward-line splitting passes and of course be a great shot-stopper is big.

He is the definition of a modern goalkeeper, and his performances so far this season show that he is made for the Premier League level.

It would not surprise me in the slightest if big money offers begin to come in for him, and they may be offers that Leicester City aren't able to turn down.

Download and subscribe to the When You're Smiling: A Leicester City Podcast for the best access to the latest talking points at King Power Stadium.

And listen to every Foxes match, home and away, on BBC Radio Leicester.

Owynn Palmer-Atkin
BBC Radio Leicester reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Over the course of Thursday, BBC Radio Leicester's Owynn Palmer-Atkin will be answering your questions about all things Leicester City.

Nick asked: Any idea why our finances suddenly plummeted? We were pushing top four, but then we couldn't compete financially. Does Top have the backing to continue his father's dream?

Owynn answered: After Leicester City won the FA Cup in 2021, the club continued to invest heavily to back the then manager Brendan Rodgers. In fact, that summer they hit their biggest ever net spend to bring Patson Daka, Boubakary Soumare, Jannik Vestergaard and Ademola Lookman to the club.

That was all done with the intention of helping the side gain that extra couple of percent needed to get over the top four barrier and qualify for the Champions League again.

As we know, that didn't happen. Leicester finished fifth and got to the semi-finals of the Conference League.

The club then couldn't continue that level of spending without the guarantee of Champions League cash, which props up a lot of the transfer business top sides do, so they decided to revert back to the old system that served them so well before.

Sell a key player and reinvest in the squad.

Ultimately, they sold Wesley Fofana in the summer of 2022 and were relegated.

Download and subscribe to the When You're Smiling: A Leicester City Podcast for the best access to the latest talking points at King Power Stadium.

And listen to every Foxes match, home and away, on BBC Radio Leicester.

Nick Mashiter
BBC Sport football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

The return of Enzo Maresca to King Power Stadium with Chelsea on Saturday will take the spotlight.

The title-winning head coach, who took Leicester back to the Premier League before moving to Stamford Bridge, deserves a place in the Foxes' history books.

But the club needs to move forward and Maresca's comeback has to be a footnote in the big picture. While it was a successful, brief spell - even if there were some grumblings about the patient style last term - there is little point dwelling on the past.

Steve Cooper has been trying to implement his vision into the team since replacing him but that naturally takes time and the squad are still taking on board the instructions having been playing in such a specific way under Maresca.

With that work, Leicester have been steadily improving, with the exception of last month's poor 3-1 defeat by Nottingham Forest. Snatching a late point against Ipswich means they have still not lost to a team below them this season.

The struggles of those below still leave the Foxes in a solid position, although it remains precarious given that any drop-off would, most likely, see them slip into the bottom three.

The progress of moving away from the Maresca era has been slow but it is happening - and while a title-winning manager should not be forgotten, it is important to look to the future.

The latest When You're Smiling episode has landed and in this week's show, BBC Radio Leicester's Adam Whitty is joined by former winger Matt Piper and Foxes fan Mark Manfield.

Following news of injuries to Abdul Fatawu and Jordan Ayew while on international duty, the team discuss Leicester's growing list of absentees.

"It is a massive blow. With Jordan Ayew, he has been an unsung hero in different games this season. He scored some late goals and he is a great player to bring off the bench for us," Manfield said.

"Also losing Abdul Fatawu is a critical blow for us. We look at our options going forward and the type of players that can create something for us, he is the main man really. He is so dangerous when he is on his game, so hopefully it won't be a lengthy injury for him but I did see he had a brace on his knee the other day in Ghana.

"They [Fatawu and Ayew] have just found their form. I don't think we are left with loads of players who give us that danger in attack and Fatawu is a game changer for me.

"Not to undo what Ayew has done but Fatawu is the real blow. The real worry is that it is a substantial injury for Ayew, that is a blow in itself. You do wonder if we are going to see him again this year or even this season.

"We take away Jamie Vardy from that attack, who we can't really be expecting to play every minute of every game anymore, it leaves us with Odsonne Edouard as the only real viable option at the minute."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Steve Cooper has a "brutal and unforgiving" job as Leicester City boss, says award-winning football writer Henry Winter.

Chants of "Cooper, Cooper sort it out" were sung by sections of Foxes fans as they succumbed to a 3-0 defeat at Manchester United before the international break.

Leicester have won just two of their 11 Premier League matches since being promoted back to the top flight.

Enzo Maresca took Leicester up from the Championship, with Cooper replacing the Italian after he left for the Chelsea job.

Winter says there remain "raised expectations" at the King Power Stadium after the club sensationally won the Premier League title eight years ago and adds that Foxes fans "remain to be convinced" by the former Nottingham Forest boss.

"The criticism will hurt him," Winter, formerly of The Times and The Daily Telegraph, told BBC East Midlands Today.

"Managers, they are not robots - they are human beings. What were they singing the other day? 'Cooper, Cooper sort it out'. And that is his job. It's brutal and unforgiving and he has to sort it out."

In the video above, Winter also talks about how Saturday's match against Chelsea, and a reunion with promotion-winning boss Maresca, will make for an intriguing test for Leicester.