Leicester have spent big in recent years, now Nigel Pearson’s side need to deliver.

Ins: Anthony Knockaert (undisclosed amount), Jamie Vardy (undisclosed amount), Ritchie de Laet (undisclosed amount), Matthew James (undisclosed amount), Zak Whitbread (free transfer), Marko Futacs (free transfer)

Outs: Lee Peltier (undisclosed amount), Matt Mills (undisclosed amount), Sol Bamba (undisclosed amount), Steve Howard (free transfer), Chris Weale (free transfer), Oliver Norburn (free transfer), John Paintsil (released), Aleksandar Tunchev (released), Franck Moussa (released), Darius Vassell (released)

Strengths: The second coming of Nigel Pearson. Leicester fans will always have a special place in their hearts for Nigel Pearson – it’s a fact that the girlfriend will just have to live with. During his first stint with The Foxes, the gaffer led the club out of League One and then gave them a shot in the play-offs the season after. Now that Pearson is back sitting comfortably in the dugout of the King Power Stadium, another charge towards glory could be on the cards.

Weaknesses: No more Sol Bamba. The Ivory Coast defender was becoming one of the most-loved Leicester City players after holding the backline for nearly 18 months. It was a shock to fans when the news started to filter through the grapevine that Bamba was on his way to Turkish side Trabzonspor.

We have to wonder if this move will help or hinder Leicester City’s leaky defence line. One thing is for sure, it’s never easy to say goodbye.

Last season’s performance: Leicester didn’t have a bad season by any means, finishing ninth, only nine points from the play-offs. But with first Sven-Goran Eriksson in charge, and then Nigel Pearson, many supporters would have liked to have seen the club doing more than just being a secure mid-table Championship side.

If they were a celebrity: Brandon Flowers. They both have gone off the rails in recent years. Flowers’ solo career does not hold a candle to his performances when lead singer of The Killers. Now that they are back doing what they know best, the question is whether they will be able to match, or even surpass, their past successes.

You might not have known: David Neilson, aka Roy Cropper from Coronation Street, is a famous Leicester City fan.

So much so, that his character has dropped references to The Foxes into the soap over the years. One time, he stated a serial number as ‘LCFC97' – honouring the club’s 1997 League Club success – and in another instance he shouted “Goodbye Mr Claridge” to a customer, shortly after Steve Claridge left Leicester City for Wolverhampton Wanderers. See, Corrie isn’t all that bad.

Championship title odds: 7/1 with Paddy Power

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