Setteling Of Leicester City for a rapid return to the Premier League

Leicester City news from LeicestershireLive as we assess which players benefitted and who suffered as a result of the club’s summer transfer business

                                  leicester city players photo credit by netspot.uk

The dust is settling on the summer transfer window and Leicester City now know the squad they will be working with as they bid for a rapid return to the Premier League under new manager Enzo Maresca. But which members of the team will be happy with how the summer played out, and which players won’t be? Here, we take a look.

Harry Winks

For a player who started a Champions League final four years ago and who is still in the prime of his career, stepping down to the Championship may not feel like a win. But for Winks, he could not be happier to finally be playing the type of football he wants to play, and the type of football which hasn’t been on display at Tottenham since Mauricio Pochettino left.

At City, he gets to be at the heart of a possession-heavy, pass-heavy style of play, something that should showcase him at his best and, especially if City get promoted, could help his chances of returning to the England squad.

At City, he gets to be at the heart of a possession-heavy, pass-heavy style of play, something that should showcase him at his best and, especially if City get promoted, could help his chances of returning to the England squad.

If Doyle has desires of getting into the Manchester City first team, playing a brand of football under Enzo Maresca that is very similar to the one he would be playing at his parent club strengthens his cause.

He’s going to get a lot of practice of being in possession at the King Power Stadium, which again should help improve him in the areas he needs to be good at if he is to catch Pep Guardiola’s eye.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall

He set out his stall early, saying he wanted to be the best player in the Championship. And he will get the chance to stake his claim week in, week out.

With just one other number eight arriving in Cesare Casadei, Dewsbury-Hall’s place in the City starting line-up feels secure. Plus, Maresca’s system gets him to get into more advanced positions, so should allow his goal and assist numbers to rise too.

LOSERS

Harry Souttar

                                 Harry Souttar photo credit by netsport .uk

Dropping into the Championship, Souttar could have been forgiven for thinking he would be a mainstay in City’s back-line, given his success in the division with Stoke for a number of years. But Maresca doesn’t see it that way, dropping the Australian international down the pecking order.

Then, a move to Rangers where he would have played alongside his brother and been given the chance to feature in the Europa League was scuppered when the Glasgow giants did not move a player on first. That means he’s stuck at City, hoping Maresca is true to his word when he says there’s a “reset” for those that didn’t leave.

Patson Daka

Daka is in the same boat at Souttar after both of his potential deadline-day switches, to AC Milan and Bournemouth, fell through.

He may actually be in a tougher position, as the signing of Tom Cannon knocks him one peg down the order as well. And with Maresca choosing only to operate with one striker at a time, it is difficult to see where Daka is going to get any game-time.

Daniel Iversen

                                              Daniel Iversen photo credit by netsport.uk

After pulling off some superb saves towards the back end of last season, and having won player of the season at Preston the year before, Iversen may have been thinking he stood a good chance of being number one at City this term.

Instead, Maresca’s desire for a goalkeeper who can use his feet has seen the Dane slip all the way down to fourth choice. That he didn’t get a move, to Crystal Palace or otherwise, means he’ll be watching from the sidelines for a while.

Marc Albrighton

There was a point in the summer when Albrighton was the only senior winger in the squad, but the promotion of two lads from the development squad in Kasey McAteer and Wanya Marcal, and the arrival of three new signings out wide in Stephy Mavididi, Yunus Akgun, and Abdul Fatawu means the title-winner didn’t even get on the bench against Hull.

But he has been publicly praised by Maresca, and so it’s not expected that his opportunities will completely dry up.

Vestergaard is enjoying his best-ever run in the City team, performing well and helping the club to win games, so it doesn’t seem like he’s been left disappointed by this transfer window.

However, he spoke at the end of July of his intentions to join a club in a top-five league and said there was interest there, leaving him hopeful of getting a move away. But with the window closed, he’s still at City.