The transfer window doesn’t officially open until next month and Enzo Maresca said before Chelsea’s interest emerged that Leicester City’s summer transfer activity would be “low key”, but that hasn’t stopped the speculation.
Here we summarise the rumours that have surfaced so far and assess the chances of the players involved representing the club next season. You are also welcome to give your opinion here in the comments section.
Abdul Fatau
This could be City’s biggest deal of the summer and looks set to happen – in Portugal, Sporting manager Ruben Amorim has spoken as if Fatau’s departure is already a sure thing, with the winger dynamo likely to return to City for the new season for a fee in the region of £14.5m.
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Alex Berenguer
But with Marc Albrighton gone and Yunus Akgun unavailable, it may not be enough to land Fatau to join the club’s wide options alongside Stephi Mavididi and Casey McAteer. So it is perhaps unsurprising that City, along with several other clubs, have expressed interest in signing Berenguer from Athletic Bilbao. As it stands, Berenguer is available on a free transfer, but Athletic are still hoping they can convince him to stay.
Christos Mandas
City are threatening to sell players this June to comply with financial regulations, and links with Lazio goalkeeper Mandas only make sense if Mads Hermansen is one of the players to move. The Dane is a true modern goalkeeper and destined to reach the top flight, so a decent transfer fee is likely. However, while Mandas also looks talented, City fans will be hoping the club doesn’t sign him; they’d prefer to keep Hermansen.
Gabriel Pereira
The Brazilian centre-back has been performing well under Portuguese manager Gil Vicente this season and has attracted the attention of several clubs, including City, who are set to say goodbye to their teammates and move on this summer. City are not desperate to strengthen their defence – Wout Faes, Conor Coady and Ben Nelson are in the squad, and Jannik Vestergaard is also expected to sign a new contract – but with a club facing far more talented strikers in the Premier League, some extra quality in defence would not be surprising.
Ibrahim Maza
Where City appear to be short on manpower is in attacking midfield. With Yunus and Dennis Praet departing and Wilfred Ndidi likely to revert to a defensive role if he stays, they will need some new faces in the area just behind the striker. One intriguing name that has emerged in that position is Germany U-19 international Maza, who plays in the second Bundesliga division for Hertha Berlin and could be sold this summer to help the club break even. However, while he could be a starter in the future, he may not yet be ready to start at Premier League level.
