According to reports, Leicester City are now eyeing a bid for West Bromwich Albion midfielder Nacer Chadli as the Foxes prepare for life after Danny Drinkwater with the English international’s move to Chelsea looking imminent at the moment.
Leicester haven’t been particularly entertained by the Baggies this summer with their previous two bids for centre half Jonny Evans already getting rejected. The case with Chadli, however, looks different who is available for the clubs at the moment but wouldn’t prefer to go out of the Premier League.
And if reports are to be believed, then Tony Pulis is demanding something above the region of £18 million to part ways with the Belgian, which was the price for which Chadli had left White Hart Lane to come to the Hawthorns last summer.
Leicester City have started the season in a poor manner, losing two of the three league games. And although the two defeats came at the hands of Arsenal and Manchester United, Craig Shakespeare would hope his side performs better against the top six as they resume the season after the international break.
One of the biggest strengths of Chadli has been his versatility in the midfield as well as in the attacking third. His supreme technique makes him a good passer and holder of the ball and his phenomenal dribbling abilities make him an impactful winger too. Hence, not only will he be a competition for the likes of Onyinye Ndidi and Daniel Amartey, but also for Riyad Mahrez and Marc Albrighton too.
Despite having a blistering start to the season contributing four goals and four assists in his first five games, his relationship with manager Pulis has turned sour with time. The Belgian international was supposedly unhappy with the style of his play last season and this pre-season, the player even reportedly declined to travel for their training regime to Austria. He was present as a substitute against Leicester City and Crystal Palace for the Premier League Asia Trophy though.
In Pulis’ conservative style of play, Chadli finds very little scope of expressing himself, which has become quite a hindrance for him. It was difficult for him to gain the optimal level after sustaining a serious knee injury last season. Despite returning in the second half, Chadli never really rediscovered form and was blamed for a series of missed chances that led to the Baggies finish without a win in nine.
Leicester would surely have a genuine talent in the player, but his injuries could prove to be a huge worry for Shakespeare.
