Why Basacikoglu would be an unnecessary signing for Leicester

While speaking to Dutch publication Elf Voetbal (h/t Leicestershire Live), Turkish winger Bilal Basacikoglu’s agent Yalcin Zohre recently revealed that Leicester City were interested in his client.  

The 24-year-old Basacikoglu is currently out of contract, having left former club Kayserispor last week with the Turkish top-flight club facing a severe financial crisis.

Bilal, who moved to the Turkish side last summer, has made 11 appearances so far this season in the league and has given 3 assists. His former club are struggling in the league in 17^th place, with relegation around the corner.

Ever since joining the Anatolians for a fee of €1.5million in 2018, Basacikoglu has made a total of 37 appearances and scored 3 goals. He has also contributed to the side with 4 assists in the process.

Predominantly a left-winger, he spent most of his time in Holland, playing in the youth systems of a host of clubs such as Ajax, Haarlem and RKSV Pancratius.

Meanwhile, Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester have made the best of starts to the season, with the club currently sitting safely in second place behind leaders Liverpool.

The high-flying Foxes have been excellent in their attack – thanks to the side’s good all-round show in all departments. They currently have a full squad with as many as 27 players and the attack is not an area where they need reinforcements.

Since the squad is already stocked with players like Dennis Praet, Marc Albrighton, Harvey Barnes, James Maddison, Demarai Gray and Ayoze Perez, the Foxes’ interest in Basacikoglu comes as a big surprise.

Leaving out Marc Albrighton and Demarai Gray, the rest of the Leicester attackers have looked top-notch this season with Maddison in sensational form. The Englishman has scored 5 goals and provided 3 assists in the league, making him one of the key players in the Foxes’ midfield.

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Perez has made 12 starts this season and found the target 4 times, while Praet has made 12 overall appearances and has often started games for the Foxes in recent weeks.

Verdict

With as many as six attackers in their ranks and most of them performing well, Leicester would be foolish to spend their resources on Basacikoglu.

Moreover, the Turkish winger is not a proven performer which is quite evident from his track record. Hence, Leicester making a move for Basacikoglu would just be surplus to their requirements at present.