EMMA HAYES expects Chelsea to face an aggressive challenge from Leicester with the the Foxes battling to stay in the top tier.
And the Blues chief refused to be drawn on speculation linking Pernille Harder and Magda Eriksson with Bayern Munich.
This evening Chelsea could cut Manchester United’s lead at the summit to one point should they beat the Foxes.
Victory would give their title retention hopes a boost before their FA Cup final duel with United with the Blues carrying a game in hand.
The last meeting between the teams saw the latter thrashed 8-0 in December.
Despite hammering the Foxes previously, Hayes is expecting a more aggressive challenge with the team second from bottom.
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She added: “They’re the most aggressive team in the league.
“They’ve shown in the performance against Arsenal, particularly with their results in the second half of the season, they are a team that are fighting not just to stay in the league.
“But I think they will stay in the league and they will continue to improve under Willie Kirk.
“Leicester in their form are indicative of a top five or top six side.”
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Hayes confirmed Sam Kerr will be fit after the striker was forced off by a cramp issue on Sunday following Chelsea’s 7-0 trouncing of Everton.
The Blues boss said: “She’s going to be okay. On Sunday we took her off as a precaution but she’s fine.”
Tonight’s game comes a day after reports suggest Eriksson and Harder could be set for a Bayern Munich move with their contracts due to expire at the season.
Swedish sports news outlet Fotballskanalen claimed the duo may be in line for a switch to Frauen Bundesliga side.
The WSL stars, who helped Chelsea to league and FA Cup doubles in the last two seasons, are rumoured to have also attracted interest from Real Madrid.
Blues chief Hayes added: “I’m not here to speculate on players that are under contract here and I don’t have anything else to say on it.
“I don’t speculate on rumours across the internet from clubs or continents around players that we’re either interested in or players that are at the club.
“That’s not something that we do here.”
Foxes forward Shannon O’Brien is close to making her return for Kirk’s side after more than four months out with foot and quad injuries.
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The Leicester manager said: “There’s a late decision to be made on O’Brien, who might be back in the squad for the first time in a while.
“Other than that, there’s nothing major, or no news at the moment that rules anybody out, and we’re hopeful that remains the case “
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
