Here we take a look at two players who could depart the King Power Stadium along with Kelechi Iheanacho in the summer
Enzo Maresca is on course to take Leicester City back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
But Leicester’s promotion charge has not come as a surprise to many, due to the quality of their squad.
Many of these players that Leicester have, have been regulars for them in the top flight for the last few years, up until their relegation last season.
Despite them staying, there have been plenty of rumours of some of these players leaving regardless of promotion, like Kelechi Iheanacho.
The Nigerian striker had been heavily linked with a move away in January and last summer, and is likely to leave on a free transfer regardless of if Leicester are promoted.
This is more than likely due to his high wages, and the fact he is not Leicester’s current first choice striker.
But who else could join him?
Here we take a look at two players that could follow Iheanacho out of Leicester in the summer.
Wilfred Ndidi
Ndidi has been at Leicester for over seven years, after joining from Genk in Belgium for £17 million back in January 2017.
The Nigeria international has gone on to make over 250 appearances for the club, and played a key part in Leicester’s FA Cup win in 2021.
The 27-year-old had been a regular for the Foxes this campaign until he suffered a severe muscle injury, which has kept him out of the squad for the entirety of 2024 so far.
His contract is up at the end of the season, and with reported interest from the likes of Barcelona last summer and in January, big clubs will come sniffing once again.
Leicester may also not be able to afford his wage demands if they were to offer him a new deal, even if they are promoted.
Jamie Vardy
Vardy is undoubtedly a club legend at Leicester.
He has been at the club since the summer of 2012 when he joined from Fleetwood Town, and has gone on to score over 180 goals in over 450 appearances for the club.
He was an integral part of Leicester’s infamous Premier League win in the 15/16 campaign, as he scored 24 goals.
| Jamie Vardy Leicester stats, all competitions (as of 27/02/24, as per FotMob) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 23/24 | 25 | 12 | 1 |
| 22/23 | 42 | 6 | 5 |
| 21/22 | 33 | 17 | 2 |
| 20/21 | 42 | 17 | 9 |
| 19/20 | 40 | 23 | 7 |
| 18/19 | 36 | 18 | 4 |
| 17/18 | 42 | 23 | 1 |
| 16/17 | 48 | 16 | 5 |
| 15/16 | 38 | 24 | 6 |
| 14/15 | 36 | 5 | 8 |
| 13/14 | 41 | 16 | 0 |
| 12/13 | 29 | 5 | 0 |
But Vardy is now at the age of 37, and with his contract also set to expire at the end of the season, it remains to be seen whether he will sign a new deal or retire.
Leicester are likely to be promoted, so questions are being asked as to whether Vardy still has the ability to play at Premier League level.
He has become more of an impact sub this season, so will Vardy be happy to more than likely be a benchwarmer in the Premier League, or will he retire?
Leicester would also have to look at the potential deal from a financial perspective too. Vardy is likely to be on high wages, and would probably still want more.
Even if Iheanacho does leave, the Foxes are left with Patson Daka and Tom Cannon, so would not necessarily be light in the striker department if he did leave.
It will be interesting to see what happened with Vardy at the end of the season.
Leave a Reply