Leicester v Newcastle: will Maddison, Evans and Dewsbury-Hall play?

Leicester City meet Newcastle United when the Premier League resumes on Boxing Day. But will James Maddison, Jonny Evans or Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall even feature in the contest?

Youri Tielemans, Ayoze Perez and Jamie Vardy were all on the scoresheet Tuesday evening as Leicester easily surpassed Milton Keynes Dons 3-0. After approximately one month of being out of action, the Foxes impressed upon return. That was in spite of playing Football League One opposition.

The elusive – and sometimes fabled – sharpness, determination and focus desired from manager Brendan Rodgers subsequent to warm-weather training in Dubai, plus friendlies, was plainly evident. Although, some personnel was missing, this included Maddison, Evans and Dewsbury-Hall. So are the trio available for the meaningful matchup with Newcastle? Let’s see.

Firstly, Maddison is expected to be ready for the Magpies match, which is awesome news for LCFC. Here is what was said on the two other absentees:

"“Jonny’s [Evans] got an issue with his calf and he’ll be out for a few weeks with that. Kiernan [Dewsbury-Hall], we just didn’t want to take a risk with him. He’s got a slight knock. He’ll be training this week.”Chris Davies, Leicester City assistant manager"

Chris Davies on the Leicester City performance and star man of the evening Luke Thomas

Davies spoke to lcfc.com following the defeat of the Buckinghamshire side. Rodgers’ right-hand man was thoroughly impressed with the display at Stadium MK, which he described as “professional”. The result definitely pleased and satisfied both of them.

In addition to that, Davies said what he and the Northern Irishman had preached was put into practice by the team on the night. Furthermore, the coach noted the outstanding goals scored.

Young Luke Thomas, Leicester’s leftback in the clash, was also mentioned for giving a brilliant account of himself. Incidentally, the fullback was voted Player of the Match by Leicester fans on Twitter. The 21-year-old’s key pass leading to Tielemans’ opener was sublime. An exquisite ball to Perez – the Spaniard’s touch and finish were similarly elegant and fatal – bagged the defender an assist, too.

Some of the Blue Army, my self included, believed Thomas suitable for a loan in order to prime him for future outings and campaigns with the east Midlands side. However, inury to James Justin and Ricardo Pereira’s continuous rehabilitation mean the LCFC Academy Graduate is very much required in the squad. And he proved himself once again versus MK Dons, regardless of their overall quality.