Why it’s high time Leicester City let go of Islam Slimani

According to Portuguese news outlet O Jogo (h/t Leicestershire Live), Sporting Lisbon are planning to re-sign former forward Islam Slimani.

Leicester City finisher Islam Slimani is currently on loan at French side Monaco, whom he joined last summer. The Algerian had been sent on loan as he has failed miserably to make an impact at the King Power stadium since his club-record £29m move to the Foxes from former side Sporting Lisbon.

However, Slimani’s improved displays in France for Monaco have now caught the attention of his former club, who are on the lookout for a new striker. He has been in good form, scoring nine goals and assisting seven times from his 18 league appearances.

Despite his good form abroad, the striker’s story in England has been a totally different one. The 31-year-old has so far managed just 13 goals in 46 appearances despite arriving almost four years back.

Slimani, who played under different managers at Leicester, never really could break into the first-team that saw him either being restricted to the sidelines or being sent away on loan in order to get more game time.

The finisher has in the past been loaned out to sides such as Newcastle United and Fenerbahce, before his move to France last summer. Unlike with Monaco, Slimani did not enjoy much success with the Magpies or with the Turkish giants.

Slimani, who moved to Newcastle in January 2018 played just four matches for them and has no goal to his credit. In Fenerbahce, on the other hand, he found the back of the net five times in his 25 overall appearances.

The Algerian international had earlier earned himself a big-money move to the Foxes following a whopping 27-goal campaign with Lisbon in the season before. However, Slimani has never been the same since switching from Portugal to England and showed just glimpses of his earlier form.

Meanwhile, Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester have been superb this season, thanks to an impressive display in attack from their star striker Jamie Vardy. He is, at the moment, Premier League’s top goal-scorer with 19 goals under his belt.

Their second striker Kelechi Iheanacho also has been equally excellent despite playing fewer games. He has three goals and four assists from 12 league games. Also, Rodgers had reinforced his attack in the summer by signing Ayoze Perez from Newcastle.

The Spaniard has also been an instant hit, scoring seven goals and establishing himself as a regular within the side.

That said, it would be really unnecessary of Leicester to hold onto Slimani, as the Foxes have plenty of options upfront.

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Verdict

Despite all this time, Slimani has failed to force his way into Leicester’s first-time line-up despite the club spending big on him. Apart from this season, Slimani has not made good use of his loan opportunities offered to him by his parent club. Hence, the Foxes would be better off by offloading Simani now that his former side Lisbon have shown an interest in him.