Leicester City rocked by Jordan James blow - Marti Cifuentes has confirmed it | OneFootball

Marti Cifuentes has revealed that two Leicester City stars will be out of this weekend's match against Oxford United.

Leicester City will be without two key players for this weekend's Championship fixture at home to Oxford United, Marti Cifuentes has confirmed - one of those being one of the stars of their season.

The Foxes have the opportunity to climb into the top half of the table with a victory over the U's on Saturday, with their opponents currently 23rd in the league. Only Sheffield Wednesday, who were deducted 18 points, sit behind Matt Bloomfield's side, as they search for their first win since Boxing Day.

Meanwhile, the East Midlands outfit have struggled for consistency throughout the season, and with just two wins in their last seven, their head coach is under pressure to turn the side's fortunes around and victory at the King Power Stadium will help.

However, he will have to do this without two members of his usual starting 11, and this is a fantastic opportunity for those down the pecking order to make their mark.

Jordan James and Oliver Skipp set to miss Leicester City vs Oxford United game

Jordan James has been the star of the show for Leicester this season, and without the 21-year-old's nine goals from midfield, the Foxes would be much lower down the league table than they currently are.

But, journalist Owynn Palmer-Atkin posted on X on Friday afternoon that the 21-year-old will miss the next four weeks of action, as confirmed by Cifuentes, with the potential for that spell on the sidelines to be even longer after suffering a hamstring injury.

Signed on loan from Stade Rennais in the summer, James has played 24 times for Leicester in the league this season, registering three assists to go with his goals, and his presence has been crucial for Cifuentes. Losing him is a colossal blow.

Meanwhile, Oliver Skipp will also miss Saturday's home game against Oxford after he was involved in a head collision against Wrexham in mid-week.

The former Tottenham Hotspur man was brought off in the 1-1 draw with just over 20 minutes to go, but on medical advice he has been ruled out for this weekend.

Leicester City will be looking to avenge their disappointing draw vs Oxford United in September - Jordan James absence is a blow though

Saturday is Oxford's first visit to Leicester since 1993, and they will be looking to upset the Foxes on their own patch, with three points crucial to their chances of survival in the Championship.

The two sides drew 2-2 in September at the Kassam Stadium, with Ricardo Pereira rescuing a point for Cifuentes' team after Aaron Ramsey was sent off in the first-half.

With the battle for the play-offs still incredibly tight, Leicester know that they can still sneak their way into the top six if they do find some consistency, and they will fancy their chances against the U's.

However, with both James and Skipp out, the Foxes have lost the spine of their starting XI and Oxford may see this as a great opportunity to snatch a positive result.

It is mainly the absence of James though that will be felt the most. His driving into the box this season to either get on the end of chances or create them himself have been a joy to watch, and without that in the middle of the park, Leicester could struggle.