Leicester City’s Premier League return suddenly feels much more real following the announcement of the fixtures for the 2024/25 season.
Having won the Championship to secure a return to the top flight at the first attempt, Leicester City have been left managerless as Enzo Maresca took the vacant Chelsea job a fortnight ago.
This is terrible timing, with the club facing a race against time to find their next manager ahead of what is likely to be a relegation battle next season.
Once a manager is appointed, the club can start to plan for the season ahead but this could be made all the more difficult if the club are unsuccessful in their appeal against breaching Premier League spending rules.
This could see the Foxes docked points, making the uphill battle they already face an even steeper one.
- READ MORE: What Leicester City need to do to avoid Premier League PSR breach amid ‘complex’ situation
However, there is some good news as a statistic has emerged that shows Leicester could quickly claw back any points that could be deducted.
Leicester City have second easiest Premier League start
Whichever manager comes in will know they are joining a club currently shrouded in uncertainty given the precarious financial situation Leicester find themselves in.
Both Everton and Nottingham Forest had points docked last season as a result of historical breaches of Premier League Profit and Sustainability Regulations (PSR); Everton losing six and Forest losing four.
Initially, Everton were docked ten points and Forest six, but both clubs saw these punishments reduced on appeal.
Whilst Leicester will of course be hoping to avoid having any points taken away all together, data from Opta shows that they can be optimistic even if the Premier League decide a reduction is necessary.
That is because Opta have rated Leicester as having the second easiest first ten games of the Premier League next season.
The Opta Power Rankings have been applied to each side’s first ten fixtures for the 2024/25 season and shows that Everton have the easiest first ten games, whilst Wolves have the most difficult.
Leicester have the benefit of having the second easiest start, but will be slightly disappointed two of their likely relegation rivals Everton and Forest are both also in the top three.
This does mean that they could hit the ground running, though, and the confidence as well as points this would bring could be crucial in the battle for survival.
Leicester’s first ten Premier League fixtures
Leicester begin the season on Monday 19th August at home to Tottenham Hotspur, whilst their first away game sees them travel to Fulham a week later.
Here are Leicester’s first 10 league games of the 2024/25 Premier League season:
Mon 19th August – Tottenham Hotspur (H)
Sat 24th August – Fulham (A)
Sat 31st August – Aston Villa (H)
Sat 14th September – Crystal Palace (A)
Sat 21st September – Everton (H)
Sat 28th September – Arsenal (A)
Sat 5th October – Bournemouth (H)
Sat 19th October – Southampton (A)
Sat 26th October – Nottingham Forest (H)
Sat 2nd November – Ipswich Town (A)