Why Leicester City must go ahead in their pursuit of Wesley Fofana
According to Footmercato (h/t Leicestershire Live), Leicester City are plotting an £18m bid for Saint-Etienne defender Wesley Fofana.
The 19-year-old centre-back has had a breakthrough season with the Ligue 1 side, making 24 appearances for them across all competitions.
Despite being still a teenager, Fofana’s rock-solid displays at the back has seen him establish himself as a key player for Saint-Etienne this season. The report also claims that the young defender’s swift rise through the ranks at Saint-Etienne had caught the eye of Serie A side AC Milan earlier.
Milan even tried buying Fofana by offering the French side a bid of around £18m. However, Saint-Etienne turned down that offer stating that they value Fofana closer to £27.3m. With Fofana giving a fair glimpse of his potential at such a young age in the French top flier, Leicester City, who have been tracking him earlier are now once again back in his trail. (h/t Leicestershire Live)
Fofana a good future investment for Leicester City
Leicester City, meanwhile, under Brendan Rodgers has climbed to an impressive fifth in the league table this season. One of the major reasons for the side’s rise in performances this term has been the excellent form of their centre-backs Jonny Evans and Caglar Soyuncu.
Evans and Soyuncu formed a formidable partnership in the heart of the Foxes defence that saw the side conceding just 41 goals from their overall 38 league games.
But, Evans is already 32 now and is entering the final phase of his career. Apart from Evans, Leicester just have skipper, 36-year-old Wes Morgan. However, he also, like Evans, seems to be reaching the final days of his career. Moreover, he is clearly not in his prime, meaning Leicester’s interest in young Fofana makes complete sense.
They also have another veteran – Ryan Bennett in their squad but he is expected to return to his parent club Wolves at the end of the season. Considering all this, Fofana would be a valuable addition to the Leicester squad and can prove to be an excellent future investment by the side.
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Verdict
Leicester clearly have ageing defenders in their ranks and this will prove to be a cause of worry in the future, especially if they wish to stay at the top.
That said, who better than Fofana to bolster their ranks. The youngster has proved his mettle at the highest level for Saint-Etienne. Moreover, he is just 19 and can develop his game further under the guidance of a coach like Rodgers.
