Claudio Ranieri praises 'magical' Riyad Mahrez, Jamie Vardy

Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri has heaped praise on his star duo Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy ahead of Sunday's Premier League showdown with Arsenal.

Mahrez and Vardy have contributed 32 goals and 13 assists this season to help Leicester, who escaped relegation last term with seven wins from their last nine matches, go five points clear at the top of the table with only 13 games of the season remaining.

When asked about the duo, Ranieri told Corriere dello Sport: "This year Mahrez has given us incredible magic.

"Technically I don't know who he resembles, he has immense quality and is our reference point: when we need to create, we give the ball to him.

"Vardy on the other hand has a unique characteristic, he runs at 1,000 miles an hour and always at the same speed."

Ranieri also had praise for his goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who has not missed a minute of Premier League football this year.

"He has incredible feet, he plays the ball 50 metres as if he was a trequartista (playmaker).

"Because of this the defenders play the ball to him too, knowing they can trust him with the ball as if he was a normal player."

Should Leicester win at the Emirates this weekend, they could go seven points clear depending on the result of Sunday's later match between other top-four sides Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur.