Matt Fryatt scored his second hat-trick in the space of eight days at the Walkers Stadium as Leicester beat Southend 3-0.
Fryatt scored in the 6th, 76th and 80th minutes to take his total for the season to 22.
Leicester are desperate to hold on to Fryatt, whose contract expires in the summer, but a club insider quoted by one Sunday newspaper says Fryatt and the club are “some way apart” in their contract negotiations. The same paper says Derby are “leading the chase” to sign Fryatt, quoting a fee of £1.5 milion.
The win leaves Leicester two points clear at the top of League One.
Team: Martin, Gilbert, Hobbs, Tunchev (Morrison, 74 ), Powell, Oakley, Berner (Davies, 59 ), Andy King, Dyer, Fryatt (Dickov, 84 ), Howard
Subs not used: Cisak, Campbell