In order to prepare for their return to the Premier League, Leicester City has been active during the summer window, adding sprinklings of new quality here and there.
Now that players like Michael Golding, Bobby Decordova-Reid, and Caleb Okoli have joined the Leicester team, Steve Cooper and company will be excited with the news that Wilfred Ndidi will be signing a new deal to stay at the King Power Stadium.
In central midfield, Ndidi might even play with a new teammate if the recently promoted team is successful in making a bold move.
Leicester is seeking a Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall substitute.
Leicester is in a strong position to recruit Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley, who is valued at over £25 million, this summer, according to a TEAMTalk report.
According to other claims from Football Insider, Atalanta may have the financial strength to close a deal and their standing as a premier club in Serie A may also work in their favor against Leicester, who are battling to stay out of the Premier League drop zone.
However, TEAMTalk claims that O’Riley may be persuaded to choose Cooper’s team over a foreign adventure to Italy by the Premier League’s attractiveness, as Leicester is eager to add the highly sought-after 23-year-old to its squad in an attempt to find a quick replacement for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
O’Riley’s abilities Leicester
O’Riley, who has been a fixture in Scottish football for a number of seasons, might be just what the Foxes need to move past the disappointment of losing their indigenous player to Chelsea as they try to assemble the strongest team possible in order to survive in the Premier League.
In his two years with the Hoops, O’Riley has been a consistent goal-scoring danger from the center of the park for Brendan Rodgers’ team, much like the leaving Dewsbury-Hall, so he might be the ideal replacement.
The 23-year-old, who Rodgers referred to as “wonderful” during the 23–24 season, has amassed an extremely noteworthy 27 goals and 34 assists from 121 games played in Glasgow.
Just the previous season, across all competitions, saw 37 of those goal contributions come from O’Riley, who consistently terrorized the Scottish powerhouses’ defense.
A cursory look at the table above reveals that O’Riley could more than make up for Dewsbury-Hall’s impressive output by providing Cooper’s team with another body in defensive midfield if necessary. The Danish international is not afraid to roll up his sleeves and play dirty in addition to confidently attacking.
It could be viewed as a gamble for Leicester to bid such a high amount for the on-fire Hoops midfielder though, considering he has only played in and around the EFL for Milton Keynes Dons and Fulham when previously plying his trade in England, with the Premier League a different kettle of fish altogether.
Yet, the Celtic number 33 could now be ready to make that gigantic leap, with Leicester in dire need of a creative and adaptable presence centrally, to complement the likes of the combative Ndidi and the well-rounded game of Harry Winks.
Therefore, Cooper and Co could go all out to try and win the 23-year-old’s signature soon, in order to make a statement ahead of returning to the promised land of the top division.
