Leicester City's season has degenerated into an abominable stretch of form that now threatens their very status in the EFL Championship. The experiment with Marti Cifuentes ended in a cold dismissal last month. Club legend Andy King subsequently stepped into the breach, with heart, yet results have been disastrous. Under King's interim watch, these unreliable Foxes have looked just as rudderless.
LCFC have lost four consecutive matches; including a soul-crushing collapse from 3-0 up to lose 4-3 against Southampton at their King Power Stadium home. While neither man is solely responsible for the systemic failures on Filbert Way, it is painfully evident that neither was the right fit for a squad widely devoid of class and confidence.
Gary Rowett possibly tasked with quenching flames as Leicester City face Stoke City
With the East Midlands team now mired in the relegation zone following a six-point deduction, the Leicester board appears set to appoint Gary Rowett. Though perhaps not the 'ambitious' name some craved, Rowett's open-minded, defensive structural approach may be the ideal extinguisher for this short-term relegation firefight.
Baptism of fitness fire
As is often the case in footballing tragedies, injury concerns have intensified the misery. City's current plight is exacerbated by a staggering list of seven unavailable stars, a scenario that leaves the dugout looking increasingly thin and the treatment room jam-packed.
"In attack, Abdul Fatawu is set to be available, despite a “grumble” in his knee that saw him left out of the trip to St Mary’s."Leicester Mercury
Ahead of the trip to Stoke, the Foxes received just one significant boost: Joe Aribo is available again after being ineligible against parent club Southampton. However, the list of absentees remains daunting: Jamaal Lascelles, Hamza Choudhury, Jordan James, Aaron Ramsey, Harry Souttar and Jannik Vestergaard are all sidelined.
Meanwhile, Bobby De Cordova-Reid serves the final game of his unnecessary ban. Though Abdul Fatawu apparently faces a late fitness test with a slight knee injury.