Leicester City's Pre-Season Opponents In Focus
After taking part in the Premier League Asia Trophy in Hong Kong, which will commence on Wednesday 19 July, City then take on four sides from the English football pyramid before returning to King Power Stadium for one final warm-up fixture against Borussia Mönchengladbach on Friday 4 August.
Luton Town
Wednesday 26 July
Kenilworth Road
7:45pm kick-off
The Foxes start their summer schedule with a trip to face Luton Town, who enjoyed a fantastic season in Sky Bet League 2 last term, finishing the campaign in fourth - only to narrowly miss out on a place in the Play-Off Final due to a 6-5 aggregate loss to eventual winners Blackpool.
They booked their spot in the play-offs by winning five of their final seven fixtures. New signings at Kenilworth Road include former Brentford midfielder Alan McCormack and Sparta Prague goalkeeper Marek Štěch. City have faced Luton 63 times, with the last meeting finishing in a 1-1 Sky Bet Championship draw at King Power Stadium back in 2007.
Luton's Dean Morgan cancelled out an early goal from Mark Yeates that afternoon in the second tier on Filbert Way. They start the 2017/18 campaign at home against Yeovil Town before welcoming Championship outfit Ipswich Town to Kenilworth Road in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday 8 August.
MK Dons
Friday 28 July
Stadium:MK
7:45pm kick-off
Just two days later, Craig Shakespeare’s men head to Buckinghamshire to take on Sky Bet League 1 side MK Dons, who will be gearing up for another push for promotion back into the Championship, having suffered relegation from the second tier the season before last.
The Dons, who took young City midfielder Harvey Barnes on loan last term, will be hoping for a stable start to the new campaign, with this clash being their final pre-season fixture of the summer. Barnes, 19, was named their Young Player of the Year in May.
The Foxes have faced the Buckinghamshire outfit just twice competitively, with their only league visit to Stadium:MK finishing in a 2-2 draw back in February 2009. Since then, City have contested a number of friendlies against the Dons, with the last coming in the form of a 4-0 victory in 2014.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Saturday 29 July
Molineux Stadium
3pm kick-off
Nuno Espírito Santo, the new Wolverhampton Wanderers manager, was in charge of FC Porto during the Foxes’ maiden UEFA Champions League adventure last season and arrives in the Black Country for his first taste of management in England.
Wolves will be keen to improve on a somewhat disappointing 15th-place finish in the Championship last term, with the friendly against City once again the club’s final game ahead of the new season starting. With Espírito Santo's experience in Europe, optimism is high in the West Midlands this summer.
City’s most recent competitive clash against Wolves came in 2013 with Anthony Knockaert and David Nugent securing a 2-1 success. In total, Leicester have emerged victorious from 36 of their previous 110 meetings with the three-time English champions, drawing on 32 occasions.
Burton Albion
Tuesday 1 August
Pirelli Stadium
7:45pm kick-off
Burton’s impressive achievement of maintaining their Championship status last season was recognised by many as one of the greatest successes in the club’s history. Nigel Clough's side won two and drew one of their last four matches to consign Blackburn Rovers to the old Third Division.
The Brewers, who finished in 20th place despite it being the club’s first-ever season in the second tier, will also be facing West Bromwich Albion in their pre-season schedule. The Foxes have lined-up competitively against Burton on just four occasions in the past - winning three, in the Emirates FA Cup, and losing once in the EFL Cup five years ago.
Back in 2013, first-half goals from Chris Wood and Ritchie De Laet helped the Foxes to a 2-0 win over Burton in the FA Cup Third Round. Young City midfielder Hamza Choudhury has also enjoyed two successful loan spells with Burton, notably helping them secure promotion from League 1 in 2016.
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Friday 4 August
King Power Stadium
7:45pm kick-off
Like the Foxes, Borussia Mönchengladbach competed in last season’s UEFA Champions League, where they finished third in Group C behind five-time European champions Barcelona and Manchester City, but ahead of Scottish title holders Celtic.
It’s not the first time that Borussia Mönchengladbach have visited the city of Leicester, having done so previously on 6 August, 1992. City were managed by Brian Little, who would ultimately help them clinch promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs in 1994.
The visitors ran out 3-1 victors on that day with local Leicester lad Richard Smith getting his side's only goal. Last year, the west German outfit remained in the hunt for European qualification until the final weekend, ending with a 2-2 home draw against SV Darmstadt.