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Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday prediction: Wounded Owls easy prey for Foxes
Check out the latest odds and tips ahead of the Championship clash between the Foxes and a struggling Sheffield Wednesday side
Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday betting tips
Leicester City face Sheffield Wednesday on Sunday in the opening round of fixtures in the new Championship season, with the visitors probably happy just to be starting the 2025/26 campaign (4.30pm, Sky Sports Main Event).
Manager Danny Rohl left the Owls less than two weeks before the new season after a summer which saw a raft of players leave, wages not paid and the closure of the North Stand at Hillsborough on safety grounds.
Wednesday have at least been cleared to start the season by the EFL, while the remaining players have ruled out strike ahead of Sunday’s game.
The current situation, combined with a transfer ban, means that Wednesday have Championship relegation odds of 1/3, by far the shortest of any team on betting sites.
And it isn’t an easy start to the season either, with the Owls facing Leicester City on the Foxes return to the second division.
Former QPR boss Marti Cifuentes has taken over as manager at the King Power, and despite a potential points dedction and the loss of some key players over the summer, Leicester are well-placed in the battle for promotion, with prices around 9/2 in the Championship promotion odds.
Though they may need some more additions if they’re to challenge for the title, recent seasons in the Premier League mean that the Foxes are well-prepared for another season in the second tier, and they’ll hope to start in the best way possible with a win against a struggling Sheffield Wednesday.
And the football odds are certainly in their favour to do so, with some football betting sites making Leicester as short as 1/8 for the win, versus 25/1 for the visitors.
Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday betting preview: Foxes should earn easy win
Things are starting to look up for Leicester after a dismal season back in the Premier League, with the appointment of promising manager Marti Cifuentes seemingly a step in the right direction.
While the squad still needs some work before the transfer window shuts on 1 September, Leicester seem certain to be in the fight for the promotion places, no matter what kind of points deduction they might recieve.
The Foxes have had a series of solid pre-season results despite the recent loss to Bundesliga side FC Koln, and this in stark contrast to Sheffield Wednesday, whose preparations have been marred by the departure of Rohl and a transfer ban, while several warm-up games had to be called off.
Though the announcement of Rohl’s assistant Henrik Pedersen as new manager will steady the ship somewhat at Hillsborough, it has been the preseason of nightmares for the Owls and they are miles behind their opponents in their preparations.
That is likely to be visible against ex-Premier League opponents on the first day of the season, and that has likely contributed to the Foxes being such heavy favourites in the Championship odds for this one.
In truth it is difficult to see anything but a simple Leicester win. To that end, with a lack of value in plenty of markets, we’re backing a simple Leicester win to nil.
Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday prediction 1: Leicester to win to nil - 7/10 BetVictor
Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday best bets: Mavididi to strike on return to Championship
Leicester dominated the Championship in 2023/24 to secure promotion at the first time of asking, but in 2025 it looks like life will be more difficult for the Foxes, having lost key striker Jamie Vardy as well as loan players Facundo Buonanotte and Odsonne Edouard.
It means that new manager Cifuentes will have to lean on those players who have been here and done it before, and the good news in that sense is that there are several core members of the Championship-winning side still at the club.
One such player is Stephy Mavididi, who was a key attacking player in their promotion run two seasons ago and remains one of the Foxes’ true top-flight quality players.
During his only previous season playing in the second tier, Mavididi scored 12 goals and registered six assists, which is a good return for a player deployed mainly on the left wing.
Mavididi is likely to come up against Yan Valery for Wednesday, a defender who has more interest in going forward, and the Leicester wideman may be afford enough freedom to get on the scoresheet.
Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday prediction 2: Stephy Mavididi to score anytime – 43/20 BetMGM
Leicester vs Shffield Wednesday team news
Leicester: James Justin, Ricardo Pereira and Victor Kristiansen are doubts after picking up muscle injuries in pre-season while Harry Souttar is out with an Achilles issue.
Sheffield Wednesday: The Owls only have 15 senior players to choose from with the likes of Josh Windass, Michael Smith and Djeidi Gassama among those to leave this summer. Max Lowe has handed in his notice but remains at Wednesday so could feature in some capacity.
Leicester vs Sheffield Wednesday free bets
LiveScore Bet have a bet £10, get £10 in free bets offer running this weekend to mark the start of the new Championship season.
Bettors who wager £10 or more at odds of evens or greater on any EFL competition - the Championship, League 1 and League 2 - will receive a £10 free bet for Sunday’s Community Shield.
The free bet can only be used as a single or bet builder for the Community Shield, which takes place on Sunday afternoon and features Liverpool against Crystal Palace.
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