Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson has not ruled out fielding a weakened team against Premier League leaders Chelsea on Wednesday in order to plan ahead for the Foxes' relegation fight.

Leicester seemed destined for the drop at the end of March, but have won four consecutive games in April to climb a point above the relegation zone into 17th place.

The Foxes face Chelsea on Wednesday before a run-in which features games against fellow relegation candidates Newcastle, Sunderland and QPR.

Wolves were handed a £25,000 suspended fine from the FA in 2010 for fielding a weakened side, while Blackpool received the full £25,000 punishment in 2011 for the same offence. However, Pearson insists he is only concentrating on his team's needs before the visit of Jose Mourinho's men.

"My focus is Leicester City, we will always do what is best for us," Pearson said in the Daily Mail. "If we need to freshen it up, we will. [David] Nugent is injured, [Jeff] Schlupp is injured, [Jamie] Vardy had an injection in his foot just before the [Burnley] game. We will assess it.

"All we are interested in is that our fate is now in our hands and the longer we can keep that, the better the chance we have of surviving. All I'm interested in is keeping our players focused on winning games."

The Premier League has since loosened its rules on fielding "weakened" sides, allowing managers to select any combination of players within their 25-man squad.

Leicester's fate is now in their own hands after four straight wins in April has left them a point above the drop zone. Plumb Images/Leicester City FC via Getty Images

Pearson has successful experience of relegation battles: the coach was at Carlisle in 1999 and saw his loan signing Jimmy Glass keep the club in the Conference with an injury-time winner, while he was assistant to Bryan Robson in 2005 as West Brom escaped the drop from the Premier League.

However, the manager says Leicester's recent resurgence -- capped by Saturday's 1-0 win at fellow strugglers Burnley -- has nothing to do with his history, adding: "It is about the players believing. You have to back your own ability.

"You can draw [great escape] parallels but it is all about the players you have.

"No two situations are the same. The only thing that is applicable from the different situations is that the players believe and they think every game is important and give 100 percent commitment.

"The most important thing is we put [the four wins] behind us and concentrate on the next game."