Leicester vs Southampton - FA Cup Team News and Prediction

After Chelsea booked their place in a 15th FA Cup final of their history and eighth during the Abramovich-era, ending Manchester City's quadruple dream in the process, the Blues will be eagerly anticipating who their opponents will be next month.

It's Leicester and Southampton who face off on Sunday at Wembley, hoping to book a return date in May, and while whichever team that goes through will be the underdog, neither will fear the Blues. Indeed, Chelsea haven't beaten Leicester (2-0 defeat) or Southampton (3-3 and 1-1 draws) this season, so the team that progresses will hold out plenty of hope.

Both teams will be hoping to reach a fifth FA Cup final appearance in their history, but while Saints have one trophy to their name from way back in 1976, the Foxes have never won it.

When is kick-off?
Sunday 18th April, 18:30 GMT
Where is the match?
Wembley Stadium, London
What TV channel is it on?
BT Sport 1

Form Guide

Leicester come into the game off the back of two straight defeats and the breach of COVID-19 regulations by James Maddison, Ayoze Perez and Hamza Choudhury last week came at a terrible time.

Having looked assured of a top four finish last season only to let it slip through their fingers, Foxes fans will be fearing a repeat so the FA Cup is no longer just a bonus for Brendan Rodgers' side. The Leicester boss can call on an in-form Kelechi Iheanacho, however, with the Nigerian having scored nine goals in his last six appearances for the club.

Ralph Hasenhuttl will be demanding his side bounce back from a dismal 3-0 defeat at West Brom last time out, which ended a revival of back-to-back wins. A much improved defensive display is needed if they are to maintain their record of not having conceded in the FA Cup this season, winning all four matches to nil.

Team News

The aforementioned Maddison, Perez and Choudhury have returned to training having been dropped against West Ham, though it remains to be seen whether Rodgers will continue to punish their ill behaviour. Caglar Soyuncu could be back having been forced to self-isolate following international duty and replace Daniel Amartey at the back, while Marc Albrighton made a strong impact from the bench in the defeat to the Hammers and will hope to start.

Southampton will be without Oriol Romeu through injury, along with youngsters William Smallbone and Michael Obafemi, while Takumi Minamino is ineligible having played in an earlier round of the tournament with parent club Liverpool. Hasenhuttl may well make changes following the heavy defeat last time out, with Theo Walcott and Nathan Redmond perhaps most at risk, with Moussa Djenepo and Che Adams hoping to return to the side.

Probable Lineups

Leicester (352): Schmeichel; Fofana, Evans, Soyuncu; Pereira, Tielemans, Ndidi, Praet, Castagne; Vardy, Iheanacho

Southampton (442): Forster; Walker-Peters, Bednarek, Vestergaard, Bertrand; Walcott, Ward-Prowse, Diallo, Armstrong; Adams, Ings

Key Battle: Youri Tielemans vs James Ward-Prowse

Arguably the two top performers for the respective sides this season, the midfield battle between Tielemans and Ward-Prowse will be pivotal. The two have posted similar figures across the board this season, and while Ward-Prowse edges the duel for both goals (7 to 6) and assists (5 to 3), the England international has set pieces to thank for his healthy returns.

The two have almost identical averages when it comes to retrieving possession, with 1.9 tackles per game apiece, while Tielemans has made marginally more interceptions (1.3 to 1.2 per game). The Belgian has been far more progressive with the ball, however, with more key passes from open play and substantially more successful dribbles (41 to 15), and Rodgers will be hoping that forward thinking pays dividends this weekend.

Prediction: Leicester 1-0 Southampton