With the 2016/17 Premier League season less than a week away premierleague.com looks at each of the 20 clubs.
Leicester City
Claudio Ranieri will look to repeat his side’s dream campaign of 2015/16, when they won their first Premier League title.
Highest finishing position
Leicester became only the sixth team to become Premier League champions, topping the table with 81 points, 10 clear of their closest challengers Arsenal.
They had never ended a Premier League season above eighth, finishing in the top half on only two previous occasions, 1996/97 and 1999/00.
They had returned to the PL for 2014/15, after being promoted as champions of the Championship to end a decade-long exodus. The 2016/17 season will be their 11th as a Premier League club.
Signings
The Foxes lost N’Golo Kante to Chelsea but their acquisition of Nampalys Mendy provides a like-for-like swap in midfield and Ranieri has been busy adding to the small group of players he used last season, what with the demands of UEFA Champions League football as well as the pressure of a title defence.
In total the Italian has made six signings. As well as Mendy, Ron-Robert Zieler (goalkeeper), Luis Hernandez (defender), Raul Uche Rubio, Ahmed Musa (both forwards) and Bartosz Kapustka (winger) have been brought in.
Expected formation
Leicester’s title-winning season was built on the second-fewest starting line-up changes for PL champions. Kasper Schmeichel, who signed a new deal this week, and Wes Morgan were two of only three players to feature in every single minute of the campaign.
Their 4-4-2 set-up, with Shinji Okazaki playing just off of Jamie Vardy, worked wonders and they will likely shape up similarly in 2016/17.
Managers
Ranieri will take charge for his second PL season at the King Power Stadium. Last term he guided the Foxes to 23 wins, four more than his rivals while suffering only three defeats, three fewer than anyone else.
His overall PL record stands at 184 matches, 99 wins, 49 draws and 36 defeats, having also served as head coach of Chelsea between September 2000 and May 2004.
Brian Little, Mark McGhee, Martin O’Neill, Peter Taylor, Dave Bassett, Micky Adams and Nigel Pearson are the others to have managed the club in the PL.
Last season
Leicester leapfrogged Arsenal in Matchweek 23 and stayed top of the table for the rest of the season.
They impressed across the board, scoring 68 goals with a shot conversion rate of 17.26%, the best in the league.
They completed 2,852 passes into the final third and won 4,830 overall duels, both tallies ranked first in the PL.
Pre-season form
Ranieri’s charges kicked off their preparations with a 2-1 away victory to Oxford United before beating Celtic in the International Champions Cup on penalties, last year’s PFA Player of the Year Riyad Mahrez scoring a curling effort.
They were beaten by Paris Saint-Germain in California and although a loss to Barcelona also followed, Musa led a resurgent fightback in that match with two goals to make the 4-2 scoreline look more comfortable.
Significant injuries
Leicester suffered fewer injuries than any team last season and this trend has continued over the summer, with no significant casualties to report.
Vardy had successful surgery on a wrist last month and has returned to action. Robert Huth is suspended for their 2016/17 opener against Hull City.
What the manager says
"We know very well that we are the champions, but we are the underdogs. We have a lot of respect for all the teams but of course we want to beat everybody."
Did you know?
Leicester scored 65 of their 68 goals from inside the box last season, four more than any other team. For more stats on the Foxes visit our club stats page.
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