Steve Cooper is still winless in the Premier League since taking over as Leicester City manager but takes his players to League Two Walsall in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night.
Leicester City were left disappointed to draw against Everton on Saturday but in truth Steve Cooper‘s side deserved little more after a poor display in front of a concerned home crowd.
Stephy Mavididi scored an equaliser late in the second-half to cancel out Iliman Ndiaye’s 12th-minute opener to take Leicester to three points in the Premier League.
Mavididi is an example of a player who has taken his chance as he did not start any of the first three league matches of the season under Cooper but has now scored two in two games since getting into the starting XI.
A number of players will be hoping to following in Mavididi’s footsteps with Cooper expected to ring the changes against Walsall and here are three players who must seize their opportunity.
Ricardo Pereira will look to stake Leicester City claim vs Walsall
Ricardo Pereira has made 170 appearances for Leicester across six years since signing from Porto in 2018.
However, the Portuguese full-back is yet to play a single minute in the Premier League since Cooper’s arrival and will not be satisfied watching on from the bench.
James Justin and Victor Kristiansen have been the preferred full-backs in the league so far but Pereira could put the pressure on the pair with a strong showing against Walsall having also impressed in the 4-0 win over Tranmere Rovers in the last round.
An attack-minded right-back, Pereira will hope to have the opportunity to show his manager his defensive capabilities against Walsall too as he looks to prove he can be relied upon.
Conor Coady will get Leicester City chance
Conor Coady found himself out of favour under Enzo Maresca as Leicester won the Championship last season but looked set for a bigger role this campaign in pre-season.
Injury saw the experienced centre-back miss the start of the season and he has played just seven league minutes since returning.
That cameo came against Crystal Palace as Leicester looked to see out the game but Coady ended up giving away a 92nd-minute penalty which agonisingly prevented his team taking their first three points of the season.
Wout Faes and Caleb Okoli are currently the preferred central defensive duo but Coady could stake his claim as well as build his fitness against Walsall.
Bobby De Cordova-Reid must improve on poor Leicester City start
When Bobby De Cordova-Reid joined on a free this summer many Foxes fans would have felt it was an astute bit of business for an experienced Premier League attacker.
However, the Jamaica international has struggled to impress at the start of his Leicester career and was really poor after starting in the 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on the opening weekend.
The 31-year-old will be keen to show his manager and new supporters that he has plenty to offer and he can start that with a positive performance against Walsall on Tuesday night.
Having not started in the league since the second game of the season, De Cordova-Reid will be looking to see his game time increase.
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