Daniel Feliciano

Mon 24 April 2023 14:10, UK

Leicester are hopeful that all of James Maddison, Harvey Barnes and Jamie Vardy will be available to face Leeds at Elland Road on Tuesday (25 April).

Both sides sit above the relegation zone by just one point after their results at the weekend, with Leeds losing a fourth in fifth games to Fulham while the Foxes picked up a vital three points against Wolves.

But manager Dean Smith is hopeful he will have a stronger team to choose from for the trip to Elland Road, although Jonny Evans remains out injured according to BBC Sport journalist Adam Pope.

“Foxes manager Dean Smith is hopeful that Leicester City will have James Maddison (illness), Harvey Barnes (hamstring) and Jamie Vardy (ankle) available for Tuesday’s visit to Leeds United,” he wrote on his personal Twitter account (24 April).

“Club captain Jonny Evans (viral infection), remains out of contention.”

Hope that kills

Leeds are in a position where they absolutely must win to not only cause Leicester more problems, but to also pull themselves out of the firing line for the time being.

Leeds fans and players will be hoping that their opponents will be at their weakest for the game to give them more chance of claiming all three points from the game.

But Vardy started the game at the weekend and Maddison only fell ill that morning so the likelihood is that they’ll both be able to return anyway.

Barnes has been great for Leicester this season, but Patson Daka and Kelechi Iheanacho both played well at the weekend in his absence too, so Leeds will find it incredibly difficult whether he recovers or not.

Now Leeds need to ensure that they’re able to perform regardless of who they’re coming up against, and Javi Gracia needs to start showing why the club employed him to begin with.

In other Leeds news, Jeff Stelling has predicted the result of the Premier League clash v Leicester.