Leicester City face off against former manager Enzo Maresca this afternoon in west London in what is a must-win game for the Foxes.
Times are looking bleak for the King Power Stadium side with Ruud van Nistelrooy yet to get a tune out of Leicester since joining the club as manager at the end of 2024, with relegation on the cards barring a late-season turn-around.
With Paul Merson predicting a Chelsea win against Leicester, defeat this weekend coupled with a good result for Wolves could all-but confirm the East Midland side’s relegation back down to the Championship just one year after returning to the Premier League.
Yet previous comments from Maresca on Jamie Vardy could act as inspiration for Leicester to pull off a surprise result at Stamford Bridge, even with the legendary no. 9 now in the twilight of his iconic career.
READ MORE: Who is Jamie Vardy? Inside the life of Leicester City’s legendary striker
Enzo Maresca once called Jamie Vardy England’s greatest-ever striker
In a 2024 interview with the Guardian, Maresca waxed lyrical about his time working with Vardy at Leicester, with the former Foxes coach going as far to name the veteran striker as England’s greatest-ever.
Maresca said about the 38-year-old attacker: “England has been quite lucky with strikers, like Harry Kane, Wayne Rooney and many others but if you ask me, Jamie has been the best one, people don’t realise how good he is.”
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Indeed, the former Fleetwood Town striker is still regarded with high esteem in the English game, with West Ham manager Graham Potter recently lauding Vardy having labelled the striker as one of the most ‘unique’ in the Premier League.
And heading into today’s tie in west London, Vardy will want to channel his inner greatness to fire Leicester to a big result against Chelsea, where a win could transform the Foxes’ season in the blink of an eye.
Is Chelsea – Leicester City on TV this weekend?
Leicester and Chelsea both have stakes on the line despite being on opposite ends of the Premier League, with Van Nistelrooy’s side fighting for survival in the top-flight whilst the Blue’s are still in contention for a UEFA Champions League spot.
Yet despite the narrative and potential storylines from this fixture, Leicester’s trip to Chelsea will not be shown on British TV, with Tottenham’s clash against Bournemouth on the other side of the English capital being shown instead.
As a result, British-based Leicester fans will have no legal way of watching the game, an outcome that could prove to be a huge shame if the Foxes end up besting Chelsea and coming away from Stamford Bridge with all three points.