Southampton’s record-breaking move for Lille winger Sofiane Boufal is made interesting right at the end with champions Leicester City suddenly making a move. The Saints identified Boufal as the player who will be adding the quality needed on the flanks for their new manager Claude Puel. Puel who previously managed League 1 side OSG Nice is very well aware of the quality of the winger and that has been one of the reasons why the club has wasted little time to increase their latest bid considerably from the first as they are all set for holding talks with the player which if fruitful, will smash their previous transfer record.
The twist in the plot is provided by Leicester City who have now set their targets on the winger to solve their issues on the left flank. In my previous article about the Foxes, I pointed out the areas on which they would need to strengthen before the window closes and the left wing was one of the areas mentioned along with the central midfield and right back. While Leicester are also looking to add cover in their central midfield in the form of Steven N’Zonzi and now are keen to add Boufal in their ranks.
Boufal is a player capable of playing on both the wings as well as centrally and brings to the table qualities which are quite similar to Leicester’s mercurial Riyad Mahrez. The 22-year old Morocco international is an exceptional dribbler who can wriggle his way through the tightest of situations.
The Lille star is also a very good finisher and his creativity would be an exceptional asset for the Foxes who are very reliant on their right winger for the creation of chances against deep defences. Boufal can help the team massively going forward easing the pressure on Mahrez and adding his own threat from the other flank which would be a real nightmare for the opposition defence. The biggest plus of the player is his consistency, he has shown his remarkable consistency in Ligue 1 and his fearless attitude makes him a deadly player to have in a team’s arsenal.
Leicester City are in for one of their toughest ever seasons in the top flight, this time, around as they will have to negotiate the prospect of their European fixtures alongside their domestic ones. Ranieri can no longer expect a small group of players to do the job and would have to change this time around in order to keep his players fresh. They have signed some players to increase their squad strength and depth but clearly, Ranieri feels, quite rightly so, that he still needs a few more faces in to compete on all fronts.
Boufal would be a fantastic addition to the Leicester squad and if the Foxes can snap him up right from under the noses of Southampton, then it would be one of the most exciting and thrilling signings Leicester city and Claudio Ranieri would ever make. A signing which will increase their attacking threat a lot more making the team more dangerous in the opposition half.
