Leicester City have secured their immediate return to the Premier League, following a successful campaign in Enzo Maresca’s debut season as Foxes manager.
Maresca was Pep Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City, helping the Blues win the treble at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, and he has now achieved his first success as a first team manager.
Following the Foxes’ relegation to the Championship in 2023, the King Power Stadium outfit will be keen to bolster their squad this summer, in an effort to become an established top-flight outfit once again.
However, the Midlands side will also need to offload some of their personnel ahead of the 2024/25 Premier League season, and six of the Foxes’ current squad are out of contract this summer, while some of the team’s biggest stars have been subject to transfer interest.
Foxes legend Jamie Vardy is among the players who are out of contract this summer, but as reported by The Athletic, the former England striker is set for contract talks.
Meanwhile, Maresca will be keen to retain midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who The Athletic believe to be at the centre of a transfer battle between Premier League sides Arsenal, Fulham and Brighton.
However, the door at the King Power Stadium will be left ajar for some departures, and these are the six Leicester City players we expect to leave the club this summer:
Wilfred Ndidi
Wilfred Ndidi is a Foxes stalwart, and played a key role for his side as they secured consecutive top-five Premier League finishes in 2020 and 2021.
The Nigeria international also played the full 90 minutes as the Midlands outfit defeated Chelsea in the 2021 FA Cup final, and has been equally key to the club’s promotion effort this season.
However, his current contract expires this summer, meaning Ndidi is able to depart the King Power Stadium on a free transfer, and Galatsaray are interested in the 27-year-old’s services, according to Turkish outlet Aspor, while La Liga giants Barcelona have previously been credited with interest in the ace by Goal.
Kelechi Iheanacho
Ndidi’s fellow Nigeria teammate Kelechi Iheanacho is also out of contract this upcoming transfer window, after signing a three-year extension in April 2021.
The forward has not played as much of a key role for the Foxes as Ndidi this season though, and has failed to reach double figures in the goal-scoring department this season.
Should Iheanacho leave the King Power Stadium, Foxes fans will most fondly remember his impressive 2020/21 campaign, as he scored 19 goals in 39 appearances across all competitions, with 12 goals in the Premier League, four in the FA Cup and three in the Europa League.
Dennis Praet
Dennis Praet has struggled for first-team minutes under Maresca, and has been named in the Foxes’ starting 11 on fewer than 10 occasions this campaign.
The Belgium international is out of contract this summer, while Süper Lig side Trabzonspor are keen on the midfielder, as per Turkish website FotoMac.
Meanwhile, Sport Witness reported back in December that Serie A outfit Torino are still admirers of Praet, who enjoyed a loan spell in Turin during the 2021/22 campaign.
Jannik Vestergaard
Former Southampton defender Jannik Vestergaard has been vital towards the Foxes’ promotion winning campaign, and has almost been an ever-present in Maresca’s starting lineup.
The Mail Online revealed back in February that the centre back was in contract talks with his club, however such negotiations have seemingly failed to come to fruition.
Last summer, the Leicester Mercury reported that Verstergaard was the subject of transfer interest from the Saudi Pro League, and he could be on the move this summer as his Foxes deal expires.
Marc Albrighton
Marc Albrighton is a Foxes stalwart who was an ever present for his club during the extraordinary 2015/16 Premier League title winning season.
The wideman spent the second half of the 2022/23 season on loan at fellow Midlands side West Brom, but he has played a role in the Foxes’ promotion this campaign.
Back in 2021, Albrighton signed a three-year contract extension keeping him at the club until the summer of 2024, and he now looks set to leave.
Luke Thomas
Versatile full-back Luke Thomas spent the first half of the 2023/24 season on loan with Premier League strugglers Sheffield United, and was subsequently loaned to Middlesbrough during the January transfer window, after making just 12 appearances for the Blades.
Thomas made 17 appearances for the Foxes during the 2022/23 Premier League campaign, but he may not make a top-flight return with Maresca’s men as his contract comes to an end this summer.
