Leicester City have had a bid accepted for Manchester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho. According to reports, City have agreed on a £25m fee for the 20-year-old but a few minor details still need to be worked out.
Iheanacho could be Leicester’s third signing of this summer as the Foxes have already confirmed the arrivals of Harry Maguire from Hull City and Vicente Iborra from Sevilla.
This is Craig Shakespeare’s first stint as a full-time manager at the King Power Stadium and he wants to ensure that he is going to have a quality side at his disposal before the start of the next season.
They had a very poor last campaign in comparison to their earlier season when they surprised everyone by clinching the Premier League title. But they faltered in the following season heavily as they totally got outplayed by all the teams.
Players like Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez failed to capitalise as they kept inching towards the relegation zone. But the Foxes revived their form in the last juncture of the season as they shrugged off their earlier disappointment by finishing in the 12th position.
Iheanacho could lead the striking line alongside Jamie Vardy. The Foxes are hopeful of completing the transfer but a number of things need to be sorted before the announcement.
City are very determined to put a buyback clause in the contract so they would have a reasonable option to move for the player if he excels. Also, the Nigerian youngster has some issues with his former agent regarding his image rights. So a number of matters are there on the to-do list before the deal reaches its next stage.
Leonardo Ulloa’s future is bleak and Iheanacho’s arrival will make it even more difficult for him. The player was out of favour under the previous manager Claudio Ranieri but recent reports suggest that Shakespeare is not willing to release him and the Argentine forward might sign a new deal.
Iheanacho burst onto the scene in 2015 and has netted 21 goals in 64 matches. Despite being the third choice at the Etihad Stadium after Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero, the Nigerian has racked up four goals in five starts.
He has one of the best minutes per goal ratio which might be one of the reasons for Shakespeare’s interest in him. Leicester have already splashed close to £30m so far and Shakespeare would be hoping to bring at least two or three players before shutting down their transfer business.
