Leicester City have moved closer to the signing of a young Italian defender.
Following the appointment of Steve Cooper, who was brought in to replace former Italian boss Enzo Maresca, Leicester City have yet made serious progress in the summer transfer window.
The positive atmosphere around the 2023/24 Championship winning campaign was soon lost following Maresca taking up the managerial vacancy at Chelsea, to which Leicester City midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has since joined him.
Leicester City appear to be touting the foreign markets for signings after attempts were reportedly made in signing Belgian defender Arthur Theate, as well as Cooper reportedly being interested in former Barcelona striker Martin Braithwaite.
Cooper’s squad is on the bare side, however he has now made progress in capturing his first signing ahead of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign, with a young Italian defender reportedly waiting in the wings.
Leicester City set to agree deal for Atalanta defender Caleb Okoli
Cooper has made progress in signing a centre-back ahead of the new season, with Atalanta defender Caleb Okoli ‘set to agree’ a deal with the Foxes, per Fabrizio Romano on X.
Romano has also reported that Leicester City are spending over £12m for the Italian defender, who spent the 2023/24 season on loan at Serie A side Frosinone.
Okoli appeared on 34 occasions for his loan side, becoming a regular in the heart of a back three.
Despite impressing on his season-long loan, Frosinone were relegated from Serie A after finishing in 18th place in the 2023/24 campaign.
Should Leicester City be prioritising the signing of a defender
It’s clear that Cooper is adamant that defensive back up is needed at the King Power Stadium prior to the 2024/25 Premier League campaign, as shown from his prior pursuit of Theate.
However, options at centre-back are far from depleted with the likes of Wout Faes and Conor Coady set to remain as part of the side, alongside backup defender Harry Souttar.
Cooper may look towards playing a back three, which Okoli was used in last season with Frosinone, in which further signings will be needed, however the lack of reported movements to bring in a striker raise questions.
Although Braithwaite has shown glimpses of quality in his time in La Liga, the Danish international would be unlikely to set the Premier League alight after a previous unsuccessful spell in England with Middlesbrough, albeit that was in 2017.
Okoli seems to be a very sensible purchase by Cooper, with the Italian having bags of potential, as well as 50+ Serie A caps under his belt, however concerns on the lack of attacking prowess in the side are still being raised, which ultimately should be prioritised at this moment for Leicester City.
