Why Leicester City should sign young Ismail Jakobs

According to Spanish media outlet Todo Fichajes (h/t Leicestershire Live), Leicester City are interested in FC Koln starlet Ismail Jakobs.

A Koln youth academy player, Jakobs made his Bundesliga debut back in November and has since made 14 league appearances. The 20-year-old left-winger has also contributed to his side with two goals and one assist respectively.

Jakobs broke into his boyhood club’s first-team setup this November after recovering from a muscle injury he sustained in July. Despite this being his maiden campaign, Jakobs’ consistent displays have helped him nail down a spot in Markus Gisdol’s side. Primarily a left-winger, he can also play at left-back and was named the Bundesliga’s ‘rookie of the month’ for December.

Koln have won 8 of their 10 league games since Jakobs’ arrival, forcing manager Gisdol to include the young winger in his first-team set-up. With his performances for Koln clearly turning heads, Premier League side Leicester City have now shown an interest in the £9million-rated player.

Jakobs a good addition for Leicester City

Meanwhile, Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City are in the lookout for a left-back ahead of next season due to the uncertain future of their first-choice left-back Ben Chilwell. The Englishman’s stellar displays this season has caught the attention of a host of clubs, with Chelsea the most interested in him.

The Foxes have a back-up in veteran Christian Fuchs in that role. However, he turned 34 last month and is way past his prime.

Also, Leicester do not have many players who play across the left flank. They just have in-form man Harvey Barnes and Demarai Gray, who are capable of featuring on the left. The 22-year-old Barnes is more of a left-midfielder and has been a regular feature this term under Rodgers, while Gray has been a little inconsistent.

Gray has made just 14 league appearances and has been in and out of the team for large parts of this season. With Leicester clearly in need of new faces across the left, who better than young Jakobs, who has excelled in a variety of roles for Koln this season. Hence, the Foxes should up their interest in the German youngster and land him at the King Power Stadium as soon as possible.

Read more:

• Why Kieran Tierney could solve the left-back issues of Leicester City
• Why Filip Krastev to Leicester City would boost their midfield in future
• Leicester signing 19-year-old Ligue 1 defensive ace Wesley Fofana would be a brilliant investment

Verdict

With Chilwell’s future remaining an uncertainty at the moment and Leicester’s dearth of players on the left, Jakobs’ addition will only do them a world of good. Moreover, he is still young and can develop further under Rodgers if a move happens.