PREMIER League champions Leicester City will visit the Kassam Stadium in July after Oxford United pulled off an amazing coup to secure a high-profile pre-season friendly.

Claudio Ranieri’s men are in demand and will face the likes of Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain overseas this summer.

As it stands the trip to United is their only warm-up game on English soil before the title defence begins.

And in a further boost, Leicester have agreed to let their hosts keep all of the gate receipts.

U’s boss Michael Appleton is relishing the prospect of welcoming the Foxes – and believes their star names will feature.

“As far as I’m aware they will all play,” he said.

“I think they need to because it’s just before they go away.

“I believe it might be the only game they have in England before the start of the season because they have that many commitments abroad.

“So for that to be the case and the likes of Jamie Vardy to come and play at the Kassam it’s going to be a fantastic occasion.”

Dozens of clubs are understood to have approached the Foxes for a friendly, but a link between Appleton and Leicester assistant manager Craig Shakespeare has proved key.

The pair have known each other for more than 15 years and worked together in the West Bromwich Albion coaching set-up.

Appleton said: “It’s incredible how it all panned out.

“I remember speaking to Craig a couple of months before the end of the season.

“We were going through a good spell and we had a conversation about a possible game, but the fact they’ve gone on to win the Premier League just makes it even more mouth-watering.

“I fully expect to have a full house on the night.”

But the U’s head coach believes the fact the game is going ahead is not just down to a personal link between coaches.

He said: “I think the style of football and what we’ve achieved this year played a big part.

“I’m guessing they would have had at least 70 applications to play a pre-season game, so for Oxford to come out on top speaks volumes for the club.

“It will be a fantastic occasion.”

The game will be sponsored by Liontrust, who are supporting United's pre-season, including the tour to Spain the week before the friendly with Leicester.

LEICESTER CITY’S PRE-SEASON FIXTURES

  • Tues, Jul 19: OXFORD UTD (a)
  • Sat, Jul 23: Glasgow Celtic (a)
  • Sat, Jul 30: Paris Saint-Germain (Los Angeles)
  • Wed, Aug 3: Barcelona (Stockholm)