When will Leicester return to EPL action?
By Nathan Wong
Leicester City have been thrown into turmoil by a new wave of COVID-19 infections within the squad, which has caused chaos throughout English Football. This has led to two of Leicester’s fixtures being postponed, these being a home clash with Tottenham Hotspur and an away tie versus Everton. Both of these were confirmed by the official LCFC website.
In response to a rising number of COVID-19 cases within the Foxes squad, the training ground at Seagrave was shut on Thursday for 48 hours as a ‘circuit-breaker’. This comes at a time when Leicester had insufficient players to fulfil their fixture. The real question remains, how long will the east Midlands outfit will be out of action for, especially in the context of mounting fixture congestion.
The earliest possible time Leicester City will be playing again is the 22nd of December, when LCFC face Liverpool at Anfield in the Carabao Cup. Currently, there is no indication from any authority that this game is going to be postponed although Leicester will only be able to train from Sunday at the earliest. Even if the Foxes have enough players to fulfil the fixture, there will likely be many absentees due to the 10-day isolation period. Therefore, it seems unlikely that the King Power club will play this game and if they do, it will be even more difficult for them to gain a result.
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A likely time Leicester will play again is on Boxing Day, against the Champions Manchester City. By this time, barring further infections, the Foxes should have enough players back from isolation and also match-fit. Once again, the nature of COVID-19 may prevent a few later absentees from participating and also equally depends on the state of health for the other team.
All of this talk may be irrelevant if Premier League clubs decide to carry out a ‘circuit-breaker’ for a couple of weeks over Christmas. This would mean fixtures being postponed until at least Boxing day if there is no further surge in positive tests. Further news of this will be confirmed after club officials meet on Monday.
When will Leicester City play their postponed fixtures?
Along with a desire to fulfil their TV contracts, the rescheduling of fixtures is partly why the Premier League have been so reticent to cancel the league. Throughout the rest of the season, there are only two free match weeks left, both of which are designed to host fixtures rescheduled by cup competition involvement. Nor is there much time at the end of the season due to the Nations League and then a compressed summer to fit in the World Cup.
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It’s inevitable that whatever choice is taken by officials, it is going to be at the players’ detriment. Given LCFC’s injury record, this comes as bad news. Ultimately, a policy of damage limitation must be achieved, with midweek fixtures and rotation set to become a recurring feature.