Why Leicester should resist any approach from other clubs for Iheanacho

According to The Athletic (h/t Birmingham Live), Aston Villa have Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho on their radar.

The 23-year old Iheanacho is being pursued by Dean Smith’s Villa ahead of the winter transfer window.

Villa, who gained promotion to the Premier League this season had spent significantly in the summer to add more strength to their squad.

Hence, the January transfer window should be a rather quiet affair for the Villans. However, Smith must bolster his squad by adding more depth to it, with the second half of the season soon to begin.

The Birmingham side currently have two back up options in Jonathan Kodjia and Keinan Davis for their main striker and summer signing Wesley.

Kodjia is nearing his thirties, while Davis is out due to injury and hence, the search for a new forward must be one of Smith’s top priorities during the January transfer window.

With this in mind, the Lions are eyeing a possible loan move for Iheanacho, who recently impressed with an assist and a late winner in Leicester’s 2-1 win over Everton.

It was the young striker’s first appearance of the season under manager Brendan Rodgers after consistently being overlooked due to main striker Jamie Vardy’s sensational form.  

Vardy, on the other hand, is the league’s top-scorer with 13 goals, and it has been hard for the young Iheanacho to bag some game time given the Englishman’s eye-catching displays on the field.

Leicester under Rodgers are flying high this season, as they sit comfortably at second place, eight points behind leaders Liverpool.

So far, the Foxes have won 10 out of 14 matches and Iheanacho was the man to thank last time, as he helped them continue their unbeaten run to six matches by scoring late against the Toffees.

The Nigerian has scored in every match he has played this season, even after being snubbed constantly by Rodgers. He has netted 3 times in as many matches across all competitions this season.

After joining the Manchester City academy in 2014, Iheanacho quickly rose up through the ranks and was handed his senior debut the very next year.

The Super Eagles frontman spent two seasons with City before making his move to Leicester in 2017. During his time at Manchester, Iheanacho played 64 matches and scored 21 times, while also winning the Carabao Cup (2016).

Since joining the Foxes for £25m in 2017, the Nigerian has made most of his appearances from the bench due to first-choice striker Jamie Vardy’s consistent form.

To date, the youngster has 13 goals and 9 assists from 66 appearances for the Foxes. Iheanacho, who plays as a second striker at times, is also an under-17 World Cup winner with Nigeria (2013).

He played a crucial role in their cup-winning campaign, scoring 6 and assisting 7 to grab the Golden Ball award.

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He has so far featured in 23 matches for the Eagles senior side and has hit the target 7 times. Meanwhile, the Foxes, who are in top-form, have only Iheanacho as a back-up to main man Vardy.

With clubs such as Villa interested in the youngster, Leicester would be left with no other forward if they allow the Nigerian a move away from the club.

Verdict

With not many options left for the finisher’s role, it would be really unwise of the Foxes to let go of their young striker. Moreover, having another finisher would offer Rodgers more options in the attack.