Leicester’s Transfer Strategy Under Scrutiny: £17 Million Spent on Non-Priority Players

Michael Golding and Kaleb Okoli are the only incoming transfers involving a fee for Leicester City so far, aside from the free transfer of Bobby De Cordova-Reid.

These moves seem to have occurred without much input from new manager Steve Cooper.

Golding’s arrival might have been a strategic move to facilitate the Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall transfer, and he doesn’t appear to be a prospective starter for this season, given his limited pre-season playtime.

Steve Cooper seems to favor a back four, with Wout Faes and Jannik Vestergaard reintegrated into the squad.

Alongside Conor Coady, Harry Souttar, and Ben Nelson as options, and the emergency fallback of Wilfred Ndidi and Hamza Choudhury, the acquisition of Kaleb Okoli seems redundant unless he’s viewed as a clear first-choice starter.

However, it’s questionable if he should rank above recent full internationals like Coady, Vestergaard, or Faes.

Vestergaard’s recent three-year contract extension, based on his solid performances last season, suggests he should be a regular starter.

Despite criticism from fans, Faes’s defensive skills and qualities shouldn’t be underestimated. It’s implausible that Leicester would bench Faes, so selling either him or Vestergaard seems unlikely and unwise.

Spending £12 million on a player in a position already stocked with five full internationals and an England U-20 player seems wasteful.

Leicester has a history of squandering money on players who end up getting insufficient game time, which is an unsustainable approach.

A football club must maintain a balanced squad where expectations align within the group, fostering a positive atmosphere.

Ideally, only 16 to 17 players should consider themselves regular starters. While a manager can manage one or two dissatisfied players, dealing with a larger number of unhappy squad members is problematic.

Balancing the squad with a rotation policy is possible, but for a club with limited resources, excessive rotation could weaken the team overall.

Leicester has previously competed successfully with top teams by maintaining a consistent lineup with minimal changes.

Currently, Leicester lacks creativity in midfield and has an overabundance of similar players in certain positions, creating an unbalanced squad.

While Enzo Maresca managed to make effective changes last season in the Championship, the Premier League presents a new level of challenge starting in August.