- Leicester City travel to face Premier League Chelsea in the Emirates FA Cup- Sundayâs quarter-final tie presents an opportunity to return to Wembley Stadium- FA Cup winner Marc Albrighton previews the 12:45pm kick-off at Stamford Bridge- The midfielder has played a key role in Cityâs run to this stage of the competition
With a huge following expected in the capital this weekend, there will be plenty of backing for Enzo Marescaâs men at Stamford Bridge as they go in search of a cup upset against Premier League opposition. After defeating AFC Bournemouth in the last round, courtesy of Abdul Fatawuâs stunning extra-time strike on the south coast, a second successive top-flight opponent awaits in Sundayâs 12:45pm kick-off. âIt felt really good,â Albrighton commented on the victory at Vitality Stadium. âObviously with the changes that the Manager made, a few of the lads who have been playing regularly in the league stayed at home.
âGoing away to a Premier League side, it was going to be a difficult game for us but the lads who came in were itching to play as well, so we showed that and our professionalism to keep ourselves ready for when called upon. We did that and it was a really good night.
âIt took us until extra-time to go and win the game, but we played really well over the 90 minutes and could have nicked it in regular time. It wasnât to be, but we kept going and showed our fitness levels as well and it was good to get minutes for the lads who havenât played as much.â
One game from Wembley and a cup semi-final, Leicester head to London with the intention of coming away victorious but are aware of the challenge awaiting them against the eight-time winners.
âWeâre looking at it as weâre going to win the game,â the midfielder outlined. âObviously, they are a huge side, a massive club. Theyâve had some incredible cup nights themselves and weâll show them the respect that they deserve, but not too much respect in terms of the game itself.
âWeâll go there looking to win the game. Weâre taking a lot of fans down to London so hopefully we can put on a show and make it a memorable day for them. I think if thereâs one thing the Leicester fans can take from the last 10 years is that theyâve got the right to dream of big days.
âThis would be a massive occasion if we can go there and get a win. We see ourselves as fully capable of doing that with the squad that we have and the way that weâve proved we can play this season so itâs one weâre looking forward to.â
For Albrighton, the domestic cups have provided opportunities for minutes, starting all six ties across both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup this term, registering assists in round three and round four of this competition. The 34-year-old, who captained City in the previous round, is happy to contribute whenever selected by Maresca.
He added: âI want to play as much as possible, whether that be in the league or cup or whatever competition but the FA Cup is such a prestigious competition so itâs great to be a part of and great to play in at such a good level.
âIâve loved it. Weâve had some good games against Millwall and Birmingham City. Itâs been a good run so far and hopefully we can carry on. Weâre excited. Weâve got confidence from those previous rounds. âHe (Maresca) has fully drilled it into us since day one, he wonât be looking to change for anyone. Weâll go there with our same system that we play in and we work on every day on the training pitch and hopefully weâll have enough to get a result.â
All times GMT.