Leaders Leicester face huge test

The Premier League title race could become a little clearer this weekend as surprise leaders Leicester City take on second-placed Manchester City in an enthralling encounter at the King Power Stadium.
Three points clear of City at the top, Leicester continue to defy those who believed they would have faded by this stage of the season but the visit of City promises to be a true test of their title claims.
The match, which will be played at lunchtime on Saturday, pits two of the league’s top two strikers against one another as Leicester’s Jamie Vardy faces City’s Sergio Aguero.
Vardy scored two more goals as Leicester beat Liverpool 2-0 in midweek to take his tally to 18 league goals for the season, with his first goal, a long range volley, a contender for goal of the season.
After a brief lull at the start of last month, when he had a minor groin operation, Vardy is back to full strength and manager Claudio Ranieri believes he is at 100 per cent again.
“Now it is one month since he restarted training,” he told Leicester’s official website.
“Before he didn’t train well and played without training. It is not easy. He continued to score but slowly he started to go down. Now he is fresh and is a new Vardy. He presses a lot, works very hard and scored a goal.”
Ranieri spent most of the first half of the season saying his side were getting closer to a position of safety, despite their place at the top of the league.
Now, the Italian admits they are in the running for the title and believes his side are playing at full throttle again after a brief lull.
“In training sessions I saw my players refreshed,” Ranieri told reporters. “After Christmas we were a little tired but now they’re getting better.
“Now I’m curious because on Saturday we have to run, run, run a lot.  Against City it will be another tough match but it was important to start this month well. For me it’s important to see my players fight and try to win.
“Sooner or later we’ll lose a match but that’s not important. What’s important is how we lose. If there is a great goal from an opponent, well done - but we have to fight. If Man City fight more than us, well done to them.”
Aguero scored his 13th league goal of the season in midweek and manager Manuel Pellegrini will be desperate for the Argentine to shake off a knock in time for the trip to Leicester.
City announced this week that Pellegrini would be replaced by Pep Guardiola at the end of the season but the Chilean said he was focused on trying to win a third title in five seasons.
“We are in all four competitions and I am very happy with the games we have played this season,” he said. “We have had very bad luck with injuries but the players have always showed character with fight and have played the way they like to play.”
Tottenham, level on points with Arsenal in third two points further back, host Watford while the Gunners travel to Bournemouth on Sunday, desperate to get back to winning ways after a defeat and draw in their past two games.
Champions Chelsea, still stuck in the bottom half, play fifth-placed Manchester United while at the other end, Aston Villa, six points adrift and 10 points from safety, play Norwich.
Second-bottom Sunderland are away to Liverpool while third-bottom Newcastle host West Brom. Everton travel to Stoke, Swansea meet Crystal Palace and Southampton take on West Ham in the weekend’s other games.