MX23RW : Friday, November 8 18:43:21| >> :120:3801:3801:

Leicester defender Caglar Soyuncu ruled out for "a number of weeks"

Leicester defender Caglar Soyuncu ruled out for
© Reuters
Jonny Evans also reported back from international duty with a problem.

Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers is expecting Caglar Soyuncu to be out for "a number of weeks" having picked up an abductor strain.

The Foxes' injury concerns ahead of Sunday's Premier League home clash with Aston Villa also include doubts over Jonny Evans and Jamie Vardy.

Rodgers said at his pre-match press conference on Friday: "We think that Cags is definitely out for a number of weeks. The final scans will determine the length of time.

"Jonny has come back with abdominal pain, so again, we'll review that. Vards has an issue around his calf, so we're awaiting a scan on that."

Dennis Praet (knee) is another doubt, and Daniel Amartey (hamstring) is definitely sidelined, but Rodgers has said James Maddison, who missed the 3-0 loss to West Ham on October 4 due to injury, will be available to play some part against Villa.

Soyuncu sustained his injury during the international break while away with Turkey. He did not play in any of the team's three matches.

Evans came off at half-time of Northern Ireland's match against Norway on Wednesday, having played for 210 minutes across games against Austria and Bosnia in the six days before that.

Rodgers said: "Cags – it's unfortunate. For all my time here he has been available, virtually, and he gets injured while he is away.

"Jonny coming back – he's hardly had any pre-season, because of various issues, and now he's had to play nearly three games.

"It's an awful, awful lot of football for players, and they are not machines. Players are exceptionally fit nowadays, but they're not robots."

Soyuncu and Evans' fellow centre-back Wesley Fofana could make his Leicester debut, with Rodgers saying of the 19-year-old Frenchman signed from St Etienne: "I've got no qualms about Wesley coming in to play.

"We've brought him in because he's a big talent but he's ready to come in and play now, even though he's such a young player."

Rodgers also said veteran centre-half Wes Morgan has had "some issues with his lower back, but we're hoping, if he's required, he'll be available to play."

Sunday's match is one of the Premier League fixtures in October not already selected for live coverage that is being made available on a pay-per-view basis, for £14.95 a game.

It was reported Leicester were the only club in 20 to vote against that plan.

And when Rodgers was asked on Friday for his thoughts on the model, he expressed sympathy for the fans.

"I'm disappointed for supporters, because of course at this moment in time it is already very difficult for them," he said.

"If you can't afford to pay that, then you don't get the chance to see the game. I'm hoping it is not going to be for a sustained period of time because it is hurting supporters at the moment not being able to be at the games and the relief they get is through watching it on telly.

"So we wouldn't want to be losing many games to pay-per-view. Let's hope it's not going to be for a long period, and until we get supporters back in, at the very least they get the chance to see it on TV."

ID:418641: cacheID:418641:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4499:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish pictured in action against Fulham on September 28, 2020
Read Next:
Dean Smith looks at benefit of Jack Grealish's England omission
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
FT
Bengals
34-35
Ravens
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!