Leicester City vs Man City: Is the match on TV? Plus team news, referee, kick-off time & prediction

Manchester City travel to the King Power Stadium on Saturday to take on Leicester City in the Premier League. Pep Guardiola’s side have won four of their last five games in the top flight, scoring 16 times and conceding five.

The Sky Blues come into the match on the back of a 0-0 draw with Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League in midweek - a result that saw them secure first place in their group. Erling Haaland and Joao Cancelo were substituted at half-time due to illness and a knock, with both men’s status for Leicester yet to be confirmed.

As for the Foxes, they are unbeaten in their last three league games. Brendan Rodgers’ side hammered Wolves 4-0 away from home last time out, but began the campaign poorly after failing to win any of their opening seven fixtures in the top flight.

Saturday’s games will be the 23rd meeting between the two clubs in the Premier League. The Sky Blues have the better record in their previous 22 clashes, winning 13 of them, while Leicester have seven victories and honours have been even on two occasions.

When is the match?

The game takes place on Saturday 29 October 2022 at the King Power Stadium and kicks-off is at 12:30pm.

How to watch on TV

The match will be shown live on BT SPORT 1 with coverage of the game beginning at 11:30am. A BT subscription will be required to watch the fixture.

Referee

Robert Jones will take charge of the game and this will be his first Premier League match involving City this season. The official refereed the Foxes’ 4-0 win against Nottingham Forest on October 3 - he handed out six bookings during the fixture.

Jones will be assisted at the King Power Stadium by Eddie Smart and Nick Greenhalgh, while Graham Scott will be on fourth official duty. Chris Kavanagh and Simon Long are set to oversee VAR from Stockley Park.

Team News

Guardiola made six changes to his starting XI against Dortmund from that which beat Brighton & Hove Albion 3-1 last weekend. Stefan Ortega made his competitive debut for City in goal in midweek but is expected to drop to the bench for Ederson on Saturday.

The Sky Blues will be without Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips for the trip to the Foxes, the pair are both still recovering from recent surgery, while Sergio Gomez is available for selection this weekend - the full-back was suspended for their clash with Dortmund on Tuesday and could feature at left-back. However, the status of leading-scorer Haaland and Cancelo is up in the air after the pair were substituted at half-time in Germany.

“Erling didn’t feel good, he had a little bit of a fever before the game,” Guardiola explained, when speaking to BT Sport after the game. “Joao as well, has a knock in his foot. I saw him [look] tired, Joao as well. That’s why we changed it, and in that period we struggled a lot.”

As for the hosts, their captain, former Manchester United defender Johnny Evans, could return for the Foxes against City on Saturday. The centre-back has missed their last three fixtures with a calf issue, but could be fit for the weekend.

Prediction

City are expected to leave the King Power Stadium with all three points on Saturday, but with Haaland’s fitness status still unknown, Guardiola could be forced to make several changes to his approach against the Foxes. If ruled out, Alvarez is the likely replacement for the Norwegian in the number-nine role.

However, if Haaland has overcome his illness and knock, expect the 22-year-old to cause significant problems for Leicester. The striker has already scored 17 league goals this season and doesn’t look like he’ll be letting up anytime soon.

Meanwhile, the Foxes have been in good form in recent weeks and will be doing their best to prevent the Premier League champions from leaving their home with any points. Rodgers will be relying on James Maddison and Harvey Barnes to cause problems for City’s defence.

Our prediction: City 3-1 Leicester