Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has claimed that Leicester City could see their Premier League title hopes severely dented by the absence of Jamie Vardy.
Top-flight pacesetters Leicester will be without their leading scorer for at least one match due to the red card picked up by the Englishman in the 2-2 draw with West Ham United last Sunday.
Vardy was left angered by referee Jonathan Moss's decision to show a second yellow, coming after he appeared to dive under a challenge from Angelo Ogbonna, with his reaction before leaving the pitch seeing him handed an extended ban of a further match.
City manager Claudio Ranieri is confident that his side can live without Vardy for half of their title run-in, but Pochettino is not so sure and suggests that the Foxes may struggle.
"I think it will have a big impact on Leicester because Vardy is one of the best players in the Premier League," he is quoted as saying by The Telegraph.
"Leicester have very good players and different players that can play the same way [as Vardy], but he's one of the best strikers in the League."
Vardy has 22 goals this season in the Premier League, leaving him second in the top scorers list behind Spurs striker Harry Kane.
Daniel Lewis
