Leicestershire

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.

For week 20, he takes on The Zutons frontman Dave McCabe, who supports Liverpool.

Sutton's prediction: 2-0

Aston Villa will be kicking themselves after conceding a late equaliser against Brighton.

I don't see Villa slipping up here, though, even without suspended duo Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers. Ollie Watkins will lead the line for them again - he has the jersey and will be looking to show why he should keep it when Duran is back from his ban.

Villa are strong at home while Leicester's away form is poor, with only one win and two draws from nine games on the road. They are in a relegation scrap and they are going to struggle to stay up.

The Foxes played pretty well against Manchester City last time out, and missed some good chances, but they still lost,

That defeat was their fourth in a row, and I am expecting Villa to make it five.

McCabe's prediction: 0-2

I am not sure about this one. There is a bit of a Midlands rivalry there, and I reckon Leicester might surprise a few people.

Read the full predictions and have your say here

As we enter a new calendar year and the halfway point of the season, the Opta Supercomputer has been busy making its predictions.

But who is looking most likely to be playing their football outside the top flight next season?

It is bad news for fans of the teams who made their return to the Premier League this campaign.

According to the Opta Supercomputer's simulations, Southampton - rooted to the bottom of the table on just six points - are all but guaranteed to be playing Championship football again next term with a 99.47% chance of being relegated.

The picture is also not a rosy one for Leicester City and Ipswich Town supporters, who occupy the other two relegation spots. The Supercomputer does not see too much change there - the Foxes and the Tractor Boys having a 74.61% and 70.81% chance of relegation respectively.

It is better news for Wolves under new head coach Vitor Pereira, with Wanderers now having only a 39.21% chance of a Championship return, while Everton fans will be pleased to see they have just a 12.52% chance as they hope to see Premier League football in their new stadium next season.

Crystal Palace, West Ham and Brentford can all breathe easier with Opta predicting just a 1.68%, 0.81% and 0.72% chance of relegation respectively.

And what about Manchester United after new boss Ruben Amorim declared them to be facing a relegation battle? Well, it is good news for Red Devils fans as the chance of them actually playing Championship football next campaign is just 0.11%.

Image source, Getty Images

Former Leicester City defender Matt Heath says the January transfer window "is going to be make or break" for the Foxes as they face the second half of the season battling relegation.

Speaking on BBC Radio Leicester's When You're Smiling podcast, Heath said: "We have got ourselves into a position where we are not too far away from safety, so a couple of good additions to the squad could be just what is needed to push Leicester over the line."

Foxes' boss Ruud van Nistelrooy said on Thursday that his team "needs help and improvement" and his plans are "aligned" with the owners. He did, however, refuse to comment on which areas of the pitch he hopes to strengthen.

"Van Nistelrooy doesn't want to speak about targets out loud, which is fair enough, as that poses a risk of people nabbing our targets or there being upset within the squad," Heath said.

"We need an attacking winger with a bit of pace and directness because we have lost Abdul Fatawu for the rest of the season.

"We need a little bit of quality and someone with a bit more experience. It needs to be someone who can go into the starting XI rather than just a squad player.

"I look at Crystal Palace, Everton and Wolves, who are around us and they do all have a couple of talismanic players - for example, Eberechi Eze and Dwight McNeil. We lack that one person who can be our creative talisman."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Image source, Getty Images

Following their 2-1 win at King Power Stadium in August, Aston Villa are looking to complete their first league double over Leicester since 2003-04.

The latest When You're Smiling podcast has landed.

Leicester City start 2025 in the Premier League relegation zone but Ruud van Nistelrooy will now have the chance to strengthen his squad during the transfer window.

BBC Radio Leicester's Jack Rafferty is joined by former Foxes defender Matt Heath to discuss what areas need the most attention and who could be realistic targets as profit and sustainability Rules continue to loom over the club's head.

They also speak to fan Paul Sherwood ahead of Saturday's trip to Villa Park.

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Leicester, Tottenham and Bayer Leverkusen are competing for the signing of Udinese's 22-year-old Danish defender Thomas Kristensen. (Football Insider), external

Meanwhile, Leicester are among several clubs considering a move for Manchester United's English left-back Harry Amass, 17. (Mail, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Leicester City boss Ruud van Nistelrooy has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game at Aston Villa (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Jordan Ayew will be available following suspension and Van Nistelrooy is hopeful centre-back Wout Faes will return as he is set to re-join group training from today.

• Kasey McAteer "is doing better" and although Saturday's game "comes too soon," featuring in the FA Cup game against QPR is realistic.

• Meanwhile, goalkeeper Mads Hermansen "has been assessed over the last week" but remains "at least a few weeks away" from returning.

• On whether Van Nistelrooy has backing from the club in the January transfer window: "When I came in, we assessed the current squad. I wanted to see how it was working and then look ahead to the window. We were aligned right from the start and clear on looking at certain options to strengthen the team. The team needs help and improvement."

• He would not disclose which areas he is targeting but did concede "injuries play a part" in decision making.

• Loan players Odsonne Edouard and Facundo Buonanotte are expected to remain at Leicester and not be recalled by their parent clubs.

• On using his contacts to bring in players, including from Manchester United: "Yeah, of course I am looking at my network having played in a couple of countries at different clubs. We are looking at all possibilities to help this team reach their targets. We are looking everywhere."

• Reflecting on the defeat by Manchester City: "Good performances will help to get results, but we have to make sure we get those points. We need to maintain this level of performance and look at the details in the final third to ensure that we score more."

• On opponents Aston Villa and manager Unai Emery: "He is doing an excellent job. There is quality there and they are really building into a big stable club. They will still have a top team [regardless of their injury list], so it is for us to be prepared to face them."

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

Image source, Getty Images

We asked you to tell us what Leicester City's New Year's resolution should be.

Here are some of your replies:

Tom: We need a new manager who knows about the Premier League, Ruud van Nistelrooy is lost!

Kiran: Just to survive.

Mike: We need to survive and, with the way that Leicester are playing under our new manager, I believe we will do that. Getting our existing players to play well together is the biggest priority, the points will come. Unfortunately, we do have injuries so cover in a few positions is needed. Hopefully, the transfer window will mean that our manager gets the players that he wants, that will fit in with his vision, rather than a few random makeshift players.

Andrew: To keep clean sheets. We won't win games if we keep conceding first, which we seem to do on a regular basis.

Lily: Bring back Kasper Schmeichel.

Jay: January signings will be crucial for survival. A new centre-back, central midfielder and striker would be very nice. Hopefully Ruud can keep us up.

Sam: Signing one player isn't going to solve all our problems but one resolution should be to bring in another right-back. Justin has been disappointing this year defensively and, when the manager is taking him off at 70 minutes when 1-0 behind, it suggests Van Nistelrooy thinks so too.

Jenson: To get at least one new centre-back and a new striker who can put a ball in the back of the net.

Michael: With the exception of Mads Hermansen, clear the lot out. Absolute rubbish the lot of them. One of the worst teams with no drive, no idea and no plan. I'm afraid, although a gem, Vardy is past his best. He is just running from one defender to another, no wonder he can't play a string of games together because he wears himself out.

James: Get Jon Rudkin out of our club and all of our worries will be gone!

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

It has been another entertaining year in the Premier League, so with 2025 just a matter of hours away let's take a look at the clubs that have topped the charts.

Manchester City became history makers in 2024 as they sealed their fourth successive Premier League title in May and their sixth in seven seasons.

Pep Guardiola's possession based football continued to dominate as they maintained the ball for an average of 64.5% per game and had a 90.6% passing accuracy over the year.

Brighton were the closest to matching their accuracy at 87.5% and Ange Postecoglou's similar high-risk football saw Tottenham retain 61.3% possession.

Under Jurgen Klopp and new head coach Arne Slot, Liverpool scored 92 goals in 2024 which is three more than Arsenal and nine greater than City.

The Reds registered 741 shots in total, which is a stark contrast to Leicester City who recorded the least with 170. Albeit that is only since their promotion back to the top-flight in the summer.

Of those shots, 286 of Liverpool's were on target. But it is Thomas Frank's Brentford that have proven to be the most clinical.

The Bees had a conversion rare of 15.3% after scoring 62 goals in the Premier League. Yoane Wissa found the back of the net 17 times, while Bryan Mbuemo registered 12 goals.

From goal scoring to conceding - West Ham turned over the most goals with 79.

They should look to North London for tips on how to tighten up their defence as Arsenal proved to be the most solid across all aspects of their back line.

The Gunners conceded just 25 goals across the course of the year and kept an impressive 18 clean sheets.

Sean Dyche's Everton, renowned for being stubborn to break down, kept 14 clean sheets despite only winning eight of their 36 games.

All stats are supplied by Opta

The latest episode of BBC Radio Leicester's When You're Smiling podcast has landed.

Hear from Foxes' midfielder Will Alves as Owynn, Pipes and Leicester fan Kate look back on 2024.

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds