Leicester City Opinion: Why the Foxes should go all out to sign Jamaal Lascelles
Back in July 2018, the Leicester Mercury claimed that Leicester City were interested in signing Newcastle United skipper Jamaal Lascelles as a Harry Maguire replacement.
Harry Maguire, 26, had returned after a strong World Cup with England and was heavily linked with a move to Manchester United. However, Leicester managed to keep hold of Maguire and subsequently didn’t follow their interest in Lascelles.
Now, the Evening Standard reports that Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants his club to spend big for Maguire, despite the fact that Leicester might ask for as much as £90million for him.
The Foxes will be under real pressure to keep hold of the England international, who is settled at the King Power Stadium and is a key figure of Brendan Rodgers’ side.
Leaving Leicester for Manchester United would definitely be a step up for Maguire and being a part of Solskjaer’s rebuild at Old Trafford could be an exciting project to consider for the 26-year-old defender.
That being said, it’s imperative Brendan Rodgers starts planning for potential replacements for Maguire, whose stock is arguably the highest in what is at the prime of his career.
Hence, Leicester should rekindle their interest in Jamaal Lascelles and attempt to sign him from Newcastle United this summer.
Lascelles joined Newcastle from Nottingham Forest in the summer of 2015. The centre-back’s reputation has risen significantly over the last couple of seasons and his dominant performances in the 2017/18 campaign earned him Newcastle’s player of the year award.
However, he struggled with injuries last season and loss of form didn’t help his case either.
But at the age of 25, Lascelles has time to reignite his career and a move to the Foxes would be a step in the right direction for him.
The Derby-born defender is a strong, powerful and aerially dominant defender, with good composure on the ball. He has the ability to start attacks from the back and rarely flusters under tense situations
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Lascelles is a tough tackler and has a decent turn of pace that helps him make recovery runs.
The 25-year-old is also a vocal leader, whose presence in the relatively young Leicester dressing room could be immense. Wes Morgan and Jonny Evans are edging towards the twilight of their careers, so the English defender could have a bigger role to play in Rodgers’ thrilling young side.
Verdict
However, Lascelles will cost a pretty penny in the transfer market having signed a new six-year deal with Newcastle in November.
Considering how good he is and a leader on and off the pitch, though, the Foxes must not hesitate to splash the cash on the defender.
