Leicester have won only one of their last 14 matches
Preston won the first league meeting between the teams 2-1
Recommended Bet: Preston draw no bet
Leicester City have seven Championship matches left to avoid a shocking second successive relegation and they need to hit the ground running after the international break as they host Preston North End on Friday.
The Foxes return to action in 22nd place in the table and having won only one of their last 14 games in all competitions.
They are one point behind Portsmouth, who are in the final safe position, but Pompey have a game in hand and City are above rallying Oxford United only on goal difference.
Preston have fallen away from the hunt for play-off places and head south in 13th place, but they enjoyed a 3-1 home win over Stoke last time out after losing their four previous matches.
North End won the teams' first meeting 2-1 in August, but plenty has happened to both clubs since then.
The latest Leicester vs Preston odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
Both teams will have to see how their international players are when they return to club duty, with 11 Leicester players having been away, while six have been representing their countries for Preston.
Leicester's main worry is that top scorer Jordan James was hurt in Wales' defeat by Bosnia last week and he missed the clash with Northern Ireland.
Jannik Vestergaard and Aaron Ramsey could be available again, but Harry Souttar, Asmir Begovic and Victor Kristiansen are still out.
Lewis Gibson, Callum Lang and Ali McCann could all be back in the Lilywhites' squad after injuries, but Jamal Lewis is set to miss out while Jordan Thompson is suspended.
The stats
Leicester have lost five of their last six home league games, while five of City's last six Championship games have stayed under 2.5 goals.
Preston have drawn 13 league games this season, with eight of those finishing 1-1.
Leicester have scored more than once in only one of their last six matches.
Preston led at half-time and full-time in the teams' first meeting this season.
The latest Leicester vs Preston odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Leicester have provided some hope for their fans by taking four points from their last three matches, but they remain deep in relegation trouble with seven games left and the home side look too short in the betting for a home win over Preston.
The Foxes clearly need the points more, but that has been the case in many of their recent outings and their only success since January was a 2-0 home win over an out-of-form Bristol City.
City have had more players on international duty this week, with some not returning to the club until the day before the match, and they may well be without their 10-goal top scorer, James, who was injured while playing for Wales.
Away draws with Ipswich and Watford have shown that Leicester are willing to fight for their place in the second tier, but the odds on offer seem to overstate their chances of victory.
Preston had been in a slump, taking only one point from six games, but they produced a much-improved effort to beat Stoke 3-1 last time out and recent defeats to top-10 teams Millwall, Coventry and Norwich do not necessarily mean they cannot succeed at struggling Leicester.
The visitors look a decent price in the draw-no-bet market as they bid to complete a league double over the Foxes.
