Leicester close to signing Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare for around £23m after Everton and Wolves had sniffed around the Ligue 1 winner… and the Foxes are also keen to offer Youri Tielemans a new deal
- Boubakary Soumare played 32 league games to guide Lille to the Ligue 1 title
- Leicester are confident they have their man, with the fee around £23million
- Everton and Wolves have also been interested in the 22-year-old midfielder
- Wes Morgan and Christian Fuchs are leaving after 15.5 years’ combined service
- Fringe players Hamza Choudhury and Dennis Praet could all be available
- Youri Tielemans is also set to be offered a new deal after his FA Cup final winner
Leicester are close to making Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare their first summer signing with a deal even possible this week.
The Foxes are confident they have an agreement with both player and club to complete the transfer ahead of pre-season, with the fee expected to be in the region of £23million.
Leicester were following Soumare for most of last season and knew there was a deal to be done, as the newly crowned French champions need to sell players and Soumare, a France Under-21 international, has only one year left on his contract.
Boubakary Soumare played a key part in Lille’s title-winning side but is set to leave the club
Wes Morgan and Christian Fuchs’ contracts are both up after years of distinguished service
A number of Premier League clubs, including Everton and Wolves, admired Soumare but Leicester have so far always been the 22-year-old’s first choice, despite their failure to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Boss Brendan Rodgers is targeting further summer signings, with an experienced left-back, a forward and a right-sided attacker on his list of priorities.
The departure of Wes Morgan and Christian Fuchs at the end of their contracts has eased Leicester’s wage bill a little, while fringe players Hamza Choudhury, Nampalys Mendy, Daniel Amartey and Dennis Praet could all be available this summer.
Leicester are keen to offer FA Cup final match-winner Youri Tielemans a bumper new deal
Leicester are also keen to agree a new deal with FA Cup Final hero Youri Tielemans, who has only two more years remaining on his contract and will be offered a substantial pay rise.
Tielemans is highly regarded among Europe’s top clubs but has said he is happy at Leicester and would command a huge transfer fee. The 24-year-old played for Belgium as they opened their Euro 2020 campaign with a 3-0 win over Russia.