Leicester City and Manchester United will both be looking to secure top-four finishes in the Premier League table when the pair lock horns on Sunday afternoon for what is a huge contest at the King Power Stadium.
The Foxes are currently fifth in the table, one point behind fourth-placed Chelsea and third-placed United, meaning that the three sides are battling for two positions, with Chelsea hosting Wolverhampton Wanderers on the same afternoon.
Match preview
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Entering the lockdown period in March, Leicester were third in the table, five points clear of fourth-placed Chelsea and eight clear of fifth-placed United, meaning that they were in a brilliant position to claim a top-four spot and a return to the Champions League.
The Foxes have struggled since returning to the field last month, though, picking up just two wins from their eight league matches, suffering three defeats in the process, to drop outside of the Champions League positions.
Brendan Rodgers's side know that a win over United would guarantee a top-four finish, although a point could also be enough. Indeed, if Chelsea were to lose at home to Wolves then a draw would see Leicester claim fourth as they have a much better goal difference than Frank Lampard's team.
It is absolutely fascinating heading into the final afternoon, and the fact that United dropped points at home to West Ham United on Wednesday, coupled with Chelsea's loss at Liverpool, means that Leicester are still in the hunt despite their disappointing form since the restart.
The Foxes have been fairly strong at the King Power Stadium this season, winning 11 of their 18 league games and suffering just three defeats, while they have won three of their last four on home soil.
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United moved from fifth to third on Wednesday despite the fact that they were held to a 1-1 draw by West Ham at Old Trafford; it was a tough game for the Red Devils, who needed Mason Greenwood to come up with a second-half leveler following Michail Antonio's opener from the penalty spot.
The 20-time English champions have won five and drawn three of their eight Premier League games since the restart, placing themselves in an excellent position to secure a return to the Champions League.
As mentioned, a point would ensure that they finish inside the top four, although they could lose and still qualify for next season's Champions League if Chelsea fail to overcome sixth-placed Wolves at Stamford Bridge.
The recent draws with Southampton and West Ham, in addition to the 3-1 loss to Chelsea in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, have been disappointing, but there is no question that the club would have taken this position when they returned to the field after the lockdown period.
Much of the club's summer activity, namely a potential move for Borussia Dortmund's Jadon Sancho, allegedly hinges on whether they can qualify for next season's Champions League, although they could still make it by winning the Europa League if they were to drop out of contention here.
Leicester Premier League form: LWDLWL
Man United Premier League form: WWWDWD
Man United form (all competitions): WWDWLD
Team News
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Leicester have no fresh injury concerns heading into Sunday's contest, but the Foxes are still without key players in the shape of James Maddison, Ben Chilwell and Ricardo Pereira through injury.
Christian Fuchs and Daniel Amartey are also sidelined, while key centre-back Caglar Soyuncu is suspended, meaning that Wes Morgan will again play in a back three alongside Jonny Evans and Ryan Bennett.
Marc Albrighton is in contention to return, having missed the side's last two squads through injury, although Harvey Barnes and Ayoze Perez are again likely to support Jamie Vardy in the final third of the field.
Luke Thomas and James Justin, meanwhile, should feature in the two wing-back positions.
As for United, defensive pair Axel Tuanzebe and Phil Jones remain on the sidelines through injury, but Luke Shaw and Eric Bailly are both in contention to make their returns.
Shaw has been unavailable since picking up an ankle injury against Bournemouth on July 4, but the left-back is expected to be back in the starting XI for this match, replacing Brandon Williams.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka was left out of the starting side against West Ham due to a knock but will return for this game, while Nemanja Matic should keep his spot alongside Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes in midfield.
Greenwood, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial have all been in strong form since the restart, meanwhile, and will continue as the front three for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side.
Leicester possible starting lineup:
Schmeichel; Bennett, Morgan, Evans; Thomas, Tielemans, Ndidi, Justin; Barnes, Vardy, Perez
Man United possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw; Matic, Pogba; Greenwood, Fernandes, Rashford; Martial
We say: Leicester 1-2 Man United
The fact that Leicester are missing some vital players through injury could really harm them as they battle to secure a top-four spot. United will be keen to bounce back from two disappointing results, and we fancy Solskjaer's side to make sure of third spot in the table with a narrow success.
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Manchester United win with a probability of 39.33%. A win for Leicester City had a probability of 35.02% and a draw had a probability of 25.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Manchester United win was 0-1 with a probability of 9.23%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.57%) and 0-2 (6.51%). The likeliest Leicester City win was 1-0 (8.62%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.15%). The actual scoreline of 0-2 was predicted with a 6.5% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Manchester United would win this match.
