Leicester City are facing an uphill battle to secure their long-term Premier League future after yet another defeat.
The Foxes were beaten by Aston Villa on Saturday to make it a fifth consecutive defeat and leave Leicester second from bottom in the table.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 17 |  WolvesWolves | 19 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 31 | 42 | -11 | 16 |
| 18 |  IpswichIpswich | 19 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 33 | -15 | 15 |
| 19 |  LeicesterLeicester | 19 | 3 | 5 | 11 | 22 | 42 | -20 | 14 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 19 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 12 | 39 | -27 | 6 |
It’s something Ruud van Nistelrooy must address quickly and as well as secure new players, he must start picking up results sooner rather than later.
Opta predicts Leicester to be relegated but there is still time for the Foxes to turn things around it and former Leicester coach Mike Stowell has hinted at how many points will be needed to keep the club up.
Mike Stowell predicts how many points Leicester will need to stay up
Stowell was a goalkeeping coach at Leicester throughout their Championship and Premier League title wins before leaving in June 2023 after the appointment of Enzo Maresca.
The popular figure was part of Radio Leicester’s coverage of the defeat at Villa Park last weekend and in the aftermath, discussed what the Foxes must do to turn their form around.
It’s always been said that 40 points is the magic number required to stay up in the top flight, but Stowell believes that they won’t need that many.
Speaking on the When You’re Smiling Podcast, he said: “It is the team that holds their nerve most [that are going to survive relegation]. You have got to scrap and pick up points.
“It is a tally to get to that magical 36 or 37 points, which will keep you in the league, but that is another game struck off now.
“There are now 18 games to get themselves another 22 points.”
How many points are needed to avoid Premier League relegation?
Over the years, the number of points required to stay up in the Premier League have varied. On some occasions, 40 plus points are needed whereas in previous years, as little as 34 is enough.
At the time of writing, Leicester have 14 points and that clearly won’t be enough, but how many would’ve been needed across the last five seasons?
| Season | Points required to stay up in the Premier League |
| 2023/24 | 33 |
| 2022/23 | 37 |
| 2021/22 | 39 |
| 2020/21 | 40 |
| 2019/20 | 36 |
If Stowell’s theory is true, Leicester would’ve stayed up in three of the past five seasons, including the 2022/23 campaign where the Foxes were relegated.
The only seasons that would’ve still seen them drop into the Championship were the 2020/21 and 2021/22 seasons.
Regardless of the total required, Leicester must step it up and improve quickly.