Why a new deal for Luke Thomas is good business for Leicester City
According to Leicestershire Live, Leicester City have secured the future of highly-rated academy prospect Luke Thomas with a new long-term contract.
As per the report, the 19-year-old’s previous deal was due to expire next summer but the Foxes moved quickly to ensure that Thomas stays put at the King Power Stadium for the foreseeable future.
The length of the contract remains unspecified but manager Brendan Rodgers has expressed his delight over the youngster’s new deal, hailing the academy graduate as a ‘fantastic young player’. (h/t Leicestershire Live)
Profile
Born in Syston, Luke Thomas joined Leicester’s academy back in 2008 and soon caught the eye with his rapid progress through the ranks. The 19-year-old impressed as a left-sided defender and also as a midfielder for the Foxes at U-18 and U-23 levels, winning the award for the club’s 2019-20 Development Squad Player of the Season.
Thomas’ impressive form at the youth level was rewarded with a senior debut against Sheffield United in the Premier League back in July. The teenager put in an excellent shift at left wing-back and set up Ayoze Perez’s opener with a superb assist in an eventual 2-0 win for the Foxes.
He retained his position as a starter for subsequent fixtures against Tottenham and Man United before the end of the previous campaign and more than held his own against top-quality opposition despite Leicester losing both clashes.
The versatile starlet has also featured for England at U-18 and U-19 levels over the past year or so.
Why a new deal makes perfect sense
Luke Thomas only played three senior games for Leicester towards the back end of the 2019-20 campaign but that was enough to highlight his talent and potential as a young player.
The 19-year-old is still very much in the developmental phase of his career and a new long-term deal for the academy graduate makes perfect sense after a breakthrough last term. With his future at the club now secure, it will be interesting to see whether Rodgers opts to keep him in the squad as a part of his first-team plans for the upcoming campaign.
Conversely, a loan deal to a Championship club would also make sense, given that Thomas needs to play regularly to continue his development.
The rise of top-quality players like Ben Chilwell, Harvey Barnes, and Hamza Choudhury through the club’s ranks has been one of the major contributing factors behind Leicester’s recent success in the Premier League.
The Foxes recently made a massive profit from Chilwell’s £50m sale to Chelsea, which can be seen as a fantastic piece of business for the club. Thomas looks like a player in a mould similar to the England international.
With Chilwell now gone, Leicester have a massive void to fill at left-back and the door remains pretty much open for Thomas to establish himself in a more prominent role moving forward.
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Verdict
Suffice to say, Leicester City tying Luke Thomas down to fresh terms can be seen as a massive vote of confidence in the club’s academy prospects.
Besides making use of the transfer window to bring in quality players, the Foxes need to continue with their policy of promoting fresh talent from within their own academy ranks if they are to aim for bigger things in the future.
To the end, a new deal for the 19-year-old makes perfect sense in footballing terms and this looks like a move that could pay off handsomely for their long-term plans moving forward.
