The eleventh hour has finally arrived. As the clock ticks towards our relegation, this fixture against Portsmouth could seal our fate - without league intervention against West Bromwich Albion - and confirm the relegation of the Foxes to League One, completing a total reversal from when King Power took over. Gary Rowett has an impossible task.
Leicester are travelling to Portsmouth, where their team has secured six points from vastly superior opponents to almost confirm their own safety. Their team has fought hard for it, and now, our team must try to do the same. Somehow. Nevertheless, here is what you need to know and our predictions.
Portsmouth v Leicester City: What you need to know
At 12:30, 18-04-26, the King Power Club travels to face off at Fratton Park. Those 90 minutes plus added time will determine whether the Foxes have any hope, or if only divine intervention and a points deduction could save Leicester from relegation to League One, a total decimation of their squad, and immense cost-saving measures to prevent bankruptcy from befalling the former Premier League regulars.
Sky Sports will have the match live, a must-watch for some, possibly one to turn off for Leicester fans. As usual, there will be plenty of coverage on social media from supporters, and should the Foxes concede goals, the chorus of disappointment and frustration will be bellowing for heads to roll. The team is not in perfect shape, but there are some developments which might help those disappointed supporters see some minute glimmer of hope for at least a draw.
Jordan James returned from injury last time around with a 17min appearance. His condition is being closely monitored, but if Rowett focuses entirely on this match as THE match to determine a chance of survival, then James will be playing. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsey - whose lack of appearances due to his immediate suspension at the start of the season and injuries thereafter - has belittled his positive performances for the club.
Meanwhile, Caleb Okoli, Ben Nelson, and Victor Kristiansen remain out for the count. This means we are guaranteed to have Luke Thomas, Jannik Vestergaard, Jamaal Lascelles, and Ricardo Pereira as our back four. Rowett has little choice but to stick with a back four, with little opportunity to try something different to shore up the defensive weakness at the back.
Predictions: Damnation
The future looks bleak. The team is probably the most predictable it could be: Rowett's Foxes can almost be copied and pasted from their previous fixture, perhaps with minor alterations:
Jakub Stolarczyk, Luke Thomas, Jannik Vesergaard, Jamaal Lascelles, Ricardo Pereira, Harry Winks, Jordan James, Divine Mukasa, Jeremy Monga, Patson Daka, and Abdul Fatawu. I believe this will be a team that lacks the progressive potential, struggles to muster the ability to deliver on creative surges, and falls flat when they reach the final third: aka, the Leicester City we have seen all season long now. However, the benefit of having James, Winks, and Mukasa all in the game is that we should have the maximum creative output we possibly can with our current senior squad.
Nevertheless, our defence is fragile. It is slow, disjointed, and unprepared for an actual fight for survival. All we need is for the clock to be wound back to ten, a small respite, and yet all Portsmouth needs to do is break past the midfield, and they will have an easy time carving out a chance with pace and a little bit of teamwork between just two players.
The scoreline will go one of two ways: damnation or temporary salve. Either a 1-0 loss or a 1-2 win with James gifting the Foxes one glimmer of hope should a points deduction befall West Brom. I expect the 1-2 win, only because we need this more than ever. That being said, the confirmation of relegation would also remove all remaining pressure from the Foxes, from Rowett, and let Leicester begin preparations for life where most of our established senior squad will be forcibly moved on. An imposed renaissance.
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