LEICESTER AGREE DEAL TO SIGN £36.5M ST ETIENNE WONDERKID

Featured Image Credit: LCFC

After close to six weeks of exhausting negotiations, multiple news stories and suspect rumours, Leicester City can finally confirm the signing of French centre-back Wesley Fofana from Ligue 1 side Saint-Etienne. 

The reported fee the two clubs agreed upon was around the £30m mark that could have the potential to rise to £36.5m with add-ons.

It was described in a statement by the French club as an “exceptional offer” and is the biggest fee Saint-Etienne have ever received for a player.  

Saint Etienne who currently sit 4th in Ligue 1 have a vast experience of developing and selling on youngsters. They have sold Kurt Zouma, more recently William Saliba and now Wesley Fofana. 

There was a nagging question on the fans lips of who Leicester were going to bring in to fill the void at center-back, but now it seems Brendan Rodgers and his staff have made the conclusion that this particular 19-year-old fits the bill.

The teenager is highly regarded around Europe and has been labelled by multiple sources as one of the best young defenders the game has to offer. Sources at Saint-Etienne have said that he will become one of the French stars of football and he will now pursue that at Leicester. 

Having only played 14 league games in the French top tier, the move may be considered a risk for the Foxes, who rarely throw a lot of money around, especially for someone so inexperienced. Yet sources throughout French media and the vast amount of attention he has attracted from a host of clubs across the continent, it may turn out to be a real coup for the Premier League leaders. 

Italian powerhouse AC Milan and Premier League rivals West Ham were also interested in Fofana, which makes it just that bit more impressive, successfully fighting off some of Europe’s elite to get their man. 

Fofana slots in to the philosophy at Leicester, with it being crystal clear that the owners are building a team for the future. He will link up and add to the impressive pool of young talents the Foxes already have at their disposal. 

The signing adds to the already optimistic feeling around the King Power and hopefully Fofana will get the chance to show what he can really do, thrive on the pressure that comes with a big money move and ultimately prove to English football why Leicester splashed the cash on him.