As expected, the exit of a number of Leicester City players is already in the news as the summer transfer window approaches.
Leading the way is midfielder James Maddison, who just received a call-up to the England Three Lions squad for the upcoming international fixtures despite his club’s poor performance in the Premier League.
Other players who could be seeing lots of transfer activity and news surrounding them are Harvey Barnes, who finished as the club’s top scorer in the league this season, and Wilfred Ndidi, who has been one of the standout defensive midfielders in the league since his move to the King Power Stadium from Belgian side KRC Genk in 2017.
Leicester City have a number of players who have been attracting interest for a while and this will be an opportunity for them to rebuild the squad from the ground up using the monies they can recoup from their transfers.
For Maddison and Barnes, Leicester are understood to be expecting upwards of £80 million from both their transfers. Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Everton (who secured Premier League safety at the expense of Leicester) and West Ham United are the clubs reported to be interested in both players.
Newcastle, who will be playing in the UEFA Champions League next season are said to be prioritising Maddison and the Foxes hope to be able to get up to £50 million from his transfer alone. Villa, who will also be returning to European football next season, are understood to be prioritising Barnes and he could cost them as much as £40 million.
Youri Tielemans, who the Foxes have held on to for several seasons despite many attempts by clubs, including Arsenal, to sign him, will be leaving on a free in June.
This is a loss for the Foxes, who passed up on transfer fees in the region of £40 million when Tielemans was still in the thick of his contract. AS Roma and Borussia Dortmund are supposedly keen on the midfielder but he could remain in the Premier League.
Defender Çağlar Söyüncü is also in the same boat as Tielemans, but his next destination is said to be Atlético de Madrid in Spain. He is understood to have a verbal agreement with the LaLiga club and will join them once his contract with the newly-relegated side is up in June.
Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, owner of Leicester City, has apologised to supporters following the club’s relegation. “This responsibility that I continue to live is one of the greatest responsibilities in my life and I will continue to put everything into it – my passion, that of my family and the entire King Power community,” he said.
“I have received a massive number of messages from our fans – both positive and negative. Some want me to sell the club, some using offensive and thoughtless words, and some have been outright abusive.
“But for every hurtful message I have received, I have also received messages of support, of appreciation, of unity – both remotely and from people I have met anonymously in public, who always come to say hello to me and to my family. It means a lot to us.”
