Paul Merson is backing Chelsea to secure “an easy win” against Leicester in the lunchtime kickoff this weekend.

Head coach Enzo Maresca is returning to the King Power for the first time since leaving the Foxes but, writing in his Sportskeeda column, Merson said that, while the international break could be a factor, he feels the Blues should have more than enough to get the three points:

“I would still have to go with Chelsea in this one. They are playing alright and I have a feeling this could be an easy win.”

“The game against Arsenal was quite even and it shows Chelsea are on the right track under Enzo Maresca. Four years ago, Chelsea would have lost that game after conceding first but they ended up grabbing a point.”

What score has Merson predicted?

The Sky Sports pundit has gone with a 3-0 victory to Maresca’s team, which would be an excellent result.

Merson does express some concern that a few players may not be 100% fit after returning late to training due to long-haul flights but there is more than enough quality in the squad to cope with the issue.

Leicester v Chelsea team news

Maresca has confirmed that Reece James has suffered yet another injury setback. The club captain is not expected to be out for that long, though, with a return against Aston Villa having been pencilled in.

There is better news for Romeo Lavia. The midfielder injured his hamstring against Arsenal and he did not play in Belgium’s two matches against Italy and Israel.

However, it appears that Lavia has recovered to be in contention for the matchday squad on Saturday. The likes of Levi Colwill, Wesley Fofana, Cole Palmer, Malo Gusto and Jadon Sancho could all be available too, despite many of them having withdrawn from international duty.

Find out who is in Chelsea’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here