Crisp bowl here we come

Dion Dublin

They were one of the favourites for promotion before the start of the season and there’s not much doubt that they will be up there with the leading clubs come May, but they haven’t made the start they would have wished for although two wins last week have seen them climb to eleventh.

Manager Micky Adams has certainly rung the changes since relegation and has brought in new fewer than twelve new players although there have been some high profile departures to make room for them.

Four players signed on the dotted line as training got underway on 1^st July. They were Dion Dublin from Aston Villa, Leeds United’s former Blackburn winger Jason Wilcox, midfielder Gareth Williams from Forest and Danny Tiatto who arrived from KKMC.

Adams wasn’t finished by any means and there were four more additions in July. Firstly goalkeeper Kevin Pressman came in from Sheffield Wednesday, along with West Ham striker David Connolly, Martin Keown who had left Arsenal and Nathan Blake from Wolves.

Williams and Connolly both cost fees of £500,000 although all the others were on free transfers or Bosmans.

In the week before the season started there were three more – this time it was Joey Gudjonsson from Real Betis, he had previously been with Wolves and Villa on loan, Chris Makin from Ipswich and Everton’s Scott Gemmill. To add to that list they have taken Portsmouth’s Kevin Harper on loan just over a week ago.

Amongst the players leaving were Danny Coyne and Frank Sinclair who both joined the Clarets and will play against their former club tomorrow but also on their way out were such as Les Ferdinand, Ben Thatcher, Paul Dickov, Muzzy Izzet, Alan Rogers, Andy Impey, Paul Brooker, Billy McKinlay, Riccy Scimeca, Steve Guppy, Callum Davidson and Craig Hignett.

When they kicked off the new season nine of the new players were involved so it is perhaps no surprise that they have taken a few weeks to find their feet.

Since the international break they have won both matches. They won at Rotherham last Saturday and then beat Sheffield United on Tuesday. They led 3-0 but the Blades pulled two back to almost earn themselves a point. James Scowcroft, Nikos Dabizas and Jason Wilcox got the goals with both Dabizas and Wilcox scoring their first goals for the club.

Click HERE to see all Leicester’s results this season.

Micky Adams has been given a boost with the news that both Matt Elliott and Matt Heath are back in full training and both will be added to the squad for tomorrow’s game. However loanee Kevin Harper is ruled out with a groin strain whilst a knee injury continues to keep England goalkeeper Ian Walker on the sidelines.

Leicester are expected to select from:

Kevin Pressman, Chris Makin, Nikos Dabizas, Martin Keown, Jordan Stewart, James Scowcroft, Lilian Nalis, Gareth Williams, Jason Wilcox, Dion Dublin, David Connolly, Danny Tiatto, Tommy Wright, Scott Gemmill, Nathan Blake, Trevor Benjamin, Matt Elliott, Matt Heath.

“Clarets injury crisis deepens”, said the billboards in Burnley last night but the fact is that only Lee Roche is currently injured and he has been ruled out with the hamstring injury he sustained at Wigan.

Manager Steve Cotterill did suggest using the oxygen chamber again as he had done with Danny Coyne a week earlier but the damage was worse than first thought and he will be out for a few weeks.

Also out is Micah Hyde who will complete his three match suspension following the red card he received in the home defeat against Gillingham.

That means another change for the Clarets and we will most likely bring in new man Jean-Louis Valois for his first start. That will probably mean switching back to the 4-5-1 formation we used until Hyde went out of the side with Graham Branch playing inside to allow Valois to play out on the left.

That would mean the Burnley team lining up:

Danny Coyne, Michael Duff, Frank Sinclair, John McGreal, Mo Camara, Ian Moore, Richard Chaplow, Tony Grant, Graham Branch, Jean-Louis Valois, Robbie Blake.

As for the subs that will all depend on whether the Italian FA have got their fingers out and sent the international clearance for Amadou Sanokho and if so he will take the vacant place, otherwise it is expected that Paul Scott will go on the bench for the first time this season.

The subs will be: Brian Jensen, Ryan Townsend, Matt O’Neill, Joel Pilkington, Amadou Sanokho (or Paul Scott).

Our last, and to date only, visit to the Walkers Stadium ended in a 1-0 win with Ian Moore scoring for the Clarets in what was one of the best performances of the 2002/03 season.

We became the first side to defeat Leicester at their new stadium but it will be somewhat different tomorrow with very few involved who played in that game.

The teams were:

Leicester City: Ian Walker, Frank Sinclair, Matt Elliott, Gerry Taggart (Andy Impey 62), Callum Davidson, Jamie Scowcroft, Billy McKinlay, Stefan Oakes, Alan Rogers (Nicky Summerbee 63), Paul Dickov (Trevor Benjamin 79), Brian Deane. Subs not used: Matt Heath, Martin Reeves.

Burnley: Marlon Beresford, Dean West, Ian Cox, Arthur Gnohere, Graham Branch, Glen Little (Paul Weller 85), Steve Davis, Lee Briscoe, Ian Moore (Dimitri Papadopoulos 86), Gareth Taylor, Robbie Blake (Tony Grant 90). Subs not used: Paul Cook, Brad Maylett.