Leicester v Slavia Prague Tips: Back the Foxes to start brightly on home turf
Live at 20:00 on BT Sport Thursday evening at the King Power Stadium, Leicester welcome Slavia Prague for the second leg of their last 32 Europa League tie. A tentative opening fixture last week saw the Foxes leave Prague unscathed after a 0-0 draw, heading back to the Midlands with all still to play for. Leicester may not have scored the away goal they were hoping for, but they still remain 4/9 favourites to qualify for the last 16, with the Czech side priced at 2/1.
Leicester could be without their star man, James Maddison, after being subbed off in their 2-1 win away to Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon due to a hip injury. Ayoze Perez (injury) and Kelechi Iheanacho (suspended) will also be unavailable here which could see Cengiz Under fill the void in an attacking midfield role.
The Czech champions may also be shaking things up, with Tomas Holes, who came off injured in the first leg, not making the bench at the weekend and looking unlikely to start. Slavia’s danger man, Abdallah Sima, looks set to start as expected, scoring three in his last five European matches, could be the main threat for them going forward.
The English winger has been in the form of his life this season and he shows no signs of slowing down. He has been an incredible outlet for the Foxes down that left hand side, with his electric pace and direct running; he can be an absolute handful for defenders to contain.
In the Premier League this season, Barnes has registered 2.61 shots per 90 and hit the back of the net 9 times. In his last 20 starts in all competitions, he has scored on 10 occasions (50%), showing how pivotal he is to this growing Leicester side. With potentially no James Maddison, the price of 2/1 (33%) for Barnes to score and help Leicester progress to the last-16 looks great value.
The 23-year old Turkish international has taken a backseat at Leicester since joining from Italian side Roma, his main involvements predominantly being in domestic cup matches and the Europa League. He has been taking his opportunities and performing well when given a start and he will definitely be out to impress on Thursday evening on the European stage.
In his last 6 starts, he has registered a shot on target in all of them with a total of 11. Betfair have priced Ünder at 16/5 (24%) to have 2 or more shots on target, as short as 11/10 with other bookmakers. This bet has landed 3 times in his last 6 starts and the 16/5 on offer looks incredible value.
Brendan Rogers has this Leicester side improving week in week out and the squad is really growing in confidence. The Foxes currently sit 3rd in the Premier League and have only tasted defeat once in their last 16 matches in all competitions. Within this incredible run, they have taken all three points against the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham, leading at half time against both of the London clubs.
Leicester played three group stage matches at the King Power Stadium and were leading all three at half time. With a big Premier League match against Arsenal only three days later, they will be looking to start well and get this game in full control. Priced at Even money to be leading at half time - which has occurred in 12 of their last 17 wins - in a game they are priced massively odds on, I see this as a nice angle to get the Foxes onside.
