Leicester City make the trip to the south coast on Tuesday evening to face Bournemouth and injury news has surfaced ahead of the fifth-round FA Cup clash.
Having defeated Millwall and Birmingham City in the third and fourth rounds, The Foxes remain in contention for the FA Cup but must defeat Premier League opposition if they are to advance to the quarter-finals.
Whilst perhaps it isn’t their top priority, with Championship football to contend with, it is a competition fans will be eager to advance in.
Leicester won the tournament in 2021, defeating Chelsea 1-0 in the final, so they’ll be eager to continue their recent success.
Enzo Maresca, speaking to the media on Monday, confirmed that he’ll be making wholesale changes but insists it’ll be a strong team.
The Italian head coach also provided an update on the injury front, with further information on Jamie Vardy‘s potential return after missing Friday’s game against Leeds United.
Jamie Vardy injury update
Maresca was able to issue a timeline for Vardy’s potential return, having picked up a muscle injury in training a day before Leicester’s 3-1 defeat to Leeds United.
“Jamie Vardy is out injured for 10-15 days,” the former Manchester City assistant manager told BBC Radio Leicester on Monday.
The veteran forward, despite turning 37 in January, has shown little signs of slowing down and remains City’s top scorer this season with 12.
Vardy was a huge miss in the defeat to Leeds and that was only amplified when Patson Daka put wide a golden opportunity in the second half.
The former England international appears set to miss the clashes against Bournemouth, Queens Park Rangers and Sunderland.
Vardy may return for the away trip to Hull City on Saturday the 9th of March.
Kasey McAteer a doubt for Bournemouth
The Foxes head coach also confirmed in his pre-match press conference that young winger Kasey McAteer is a doubt for his side’s trip to the Vitality Stadium, though, did not specify what the injury is.
“Kasey is not available, and we are not sure whether he will be available for tomorrow,” Maresca told BBC Radio Leicester.
Mcateer has enjoyed a tremendous breakout season for the East Midlands club but has been plagued by injuries at points.
The 22-year-old was sidelined for much of October and also in December with a hamstring injury, so perhaps it could be a reoccurrence of that.