According to BBC, Leicester City have signed Rachid Ghezzal from AS Monaco on a four-year deal. The Algerian joined Monaco just last year on a free transfer from French outfit Lyon.
The Foxes recently sold star attacker Riyad Mahrez, who made the move across to the blue side of Manchester. Mahrez was an important figure for the club and Claude Puel had to replace him with pure quality.
To that end, signing Ghezzal seems like a brilliant move. After all, Leicester were in dire need of finding a new man to fill the void left by Mahrez and in the new Algerian, they will certainly find a like-for-like replacement. Both the players possess a similar set of silkiness in their football (h/t The Sun).
The 26-year-old Algerian winger made a total of 26 appearances in the Ligue 1 last year, scoring 2 goals and providing 3 assists in that time. The versatile attacker is generally deployed as a right-winger but is also capable of playing on the left. The former Lyon man is comfortable playing in a central attacking role as well.
He possesses Mahrez’s versatility, providing Claude Puel with a number of roles for the player. The Algerian is also a pure dribbler of the ball and like his compatriot, Ghezzal often uses his slick moves to glide past defenders. He is constantly on the move and is brilliant at timing his runs. He averaged 1.1 shots per game in the French league last season, proving to be a constant threat for goalkeepers.
Leicester talisman Jamie Vardy also needed a new partner in crime, even more so in Mahrez’s absence. And Ghezzal fits that bill perfectly, checking all the boxes needed to replace the pacy winger. The only element lacking from the winger’s game is his finishing ability which he can work on.
Claude Puel can accommodate the player in a 4-3-3, either as a left-winger or as a central attacking midfielder behind Vardy. The 26-year-old is also an accurate passer of the ball which Vardy could thrive off.
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Puel has certainly completed a masterstroke by completing a move for the Monaco winger. Now that he has moved to King Power Stadium, it would seem like Mahrez never left in the first place. With the new season fast approaching, Leicester have made all the right moves this summer.
