Facundo Buonanotte stands at the centre of Steve Cooper’s biggest tactical decision as Leicester City prepare to face Bournemouth at the King Power Stadium this Saturday (3pm kick-off).
The young Argentinian’s role is still uncertain; Cooper could deploy him on the right wing, in attacking midfield, or potentially leave him on the bench. His placement in the line-up will reflect how offensively Cooper intends to approach the match.
Buonanotte started on the right flank in Leicester’s 4-2 loss to Arsenal. If he remains in that position, it would give Cooper the option to start Bilal El Khannouss in attacking midfield.
This combination would signal City’s most attacking line-up so far this season. On the other hand, the manager could opt to keep Wilfred Ndidi in the advanced midfield role, given that the Nigerian international registered his fourth assist of the season in the game against the Gunners.
Alternatively, if Cooper decides to recall Jordan Ayew, who missed the Arsenal game due to a knock, this could push Buonanotte into a central position or see him drop to the bench.
However, Ayew’s availability remains uncertain, as Cooper revealed some players haven’t trained fully this week, though he didn’t specify names.
Ayew’s absence from recent training footage might hint at Buonanotte being given the nod to start.
Aside from this key decision, Cooper is expected to stick with a familiar line-up. Although Jannik Vestergaard has returned to training, he is unlikely to displace the established centre-back pairing of Wout Faes and Caleb Okoli. In defence, James Justin and Victor Kristiansen are set to continue as full-backs.
Further forward, Stephy Mavididi will be eager to maintain his goal-scoring form on the left wing. Meanwhile, Jamie Vardy, as captain, will lead the attack once again, hoping to guide Leicester to their first Premier League win of the season.
Predicted Leicester XI (4-2-3-1):
Hermansen; Justin, Faes, Okoli, Kristiansen; Winks, Skipp; Buonanotte, Ndidi, Mavididi; Vardy.