Stoke take on Leicester City at the Britannia Stadium this weekend and Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy has reiterated his desire to retain his place in the starting 11 after coming on as a substitute against Arsenal in the one each draw in the second half.

“It was good to get on the pitch and get it working, and hopefully now that injury is over,” he said. “It is horrible being on the sidelines. You never like watching. You want to be on the pitch and involved, helping your teammates out. Now I am back fully fit and I just hope it stays that way.”

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In other team news, Oussama Assaidi is set to return on Saturday with Mark Hughes keen to bring him back while admitting he may not be fully match fit and that he has been training and working with the group. “We’re just getting to know where he’s at.

“We’re mindful of the fact that he’s had a knee injury,” he said, “and we don’t want to compromise him by working him too hard too soon.
“We’ll give him the work that he needs and then he’ll be ready.”
Stephen Ireland is also returning to the squad after being out since August with a pulled muscle in the rib cage. Stoke assistant manager Mark Bowen said, “he came through training okay, and if he isn’t ready for this weekend I’m sure it will be banging on the door for next weekend.”

In the opposition changing rooms, Premier League new boys Leicester City bring with them a more than respectable looking squad with the former Inter Milan and Real Madrid midfielder Esteban Cambiasso already causing a stir both around the training ground and amongst fans. Fellow midfielder Danny Drinkwater insists that Cambiasso is a legend and that his signing was a real coup for the club.

Leicester City look to have a fully fit squad and will travel to the Britannia Stadium looking to have a real go at the Potters. However after last week’s shock 1-0 turnover against last season’s champions Manchester City, the Foxes will need to arrive with their shooting boots on as Stoke city will start the game with their tails up.

Leicester will also need to shore up a leaky defence as only Crystal Palace and Everton have let in more goals so far this season at 8 and 10 respectively. Stoke city currently have one of the meanest defences in the league over the first three games having let in only 2 goals. Stoke city’s form however has been indifferent having won one, drew one and lost one, scoring two goals along the way to give them a goal difference of zero.

The action on Saturday is likely to be frenetic as Leicester try to hold off an aggressive Stoke line up. Stoke are renowned for a strong, physical game and are unlikely to let up against the Foxes.

TIP: Stoke City 1-1 Leicester City

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