Burnley
Blackburn Rovers
Coventry City
Derby County
Leeds United
Luton Town
Middlesbrough
Millwall
Norwich City
Portsmouth
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield United
QPR
Leicester City fans were hoping for a wave of positivity during the summer transfer window after dropping out of the Premier League, but instead, they’ve endured a bit of a nightmare.
In far from ideal preparations ahead of their season opener against Sheffield Wednesday in August, Leicester could be handed a nine-point deduction for allegedly breaching profit and sustainability rules during the 2023/24 campaign.
The Foxes are also yet to make a signing this summer, although they have found a replacement for Ruud van Nistelrooy, with Marti Cifuentes becoming the new Leicester manager.
Cifuentes was last in charge of Queens Park Rangers but left at the end of last season, and will now be hoping to guide his new side back into the Premier League.
Unfortunately, during a period where the Foxes have made no fresh additions to their squad, they’re reminded about players they could have once captured.
- READ MORE: EFL pundit says whether Leicester City will win Championship promotion after nine-point deduction
Leicester City wanted Liverpool-bound Hugo Ekitike in 2022
Jamie Vardy has now left Leicester City after an incredible 13 years at the King Power Stadium. The 38-year-old is currently on the prowl for his next challenge, but in January 2022, former manager Brendan Rodgers was trying to sign a long-term replacement for the Englishman.
One player on their radar during that window was Reims striker Hugo Ekitike. According to French outlet Foot Mercato, Leicester were interested in signing the prolific striker alongside Newcastle United.
A £30 million transfer fee was mooted for the forward, who was just 19 at the time, but unfortunately, Leicester’s interest in him didn’t progress and PSG captured him on a season-long loan in July 2022 with an option to buy for the above price.
Ekitike ended up struggling at PSG after joining permanently, with just four goals in 33 appearances, which resulted in a £14 million transfer to Eintracht Frankfurt in 2024.
Remarkably, just a year on from his move to the Bundesliga club, the 23-year-old is closing in on a £70 million transfer to Liverpool after flying at Frankfurt.
Ekitike has become one of the best strikers in Europe following a haul of 26 goals and 14 assists in 64 appearances, including four strikes in the Europa League.
Now, it’s looking as though he will finally get his chance to test himself in the Premier League after Liverpool agreed personal terms ahead of Newcastle.
- READ MORE: Barry Bannan sends ‘frustrated’ warning to Rangers after Djeidi Gassama’s Sheffield Wednesday exit
Ekitike was compared to Kylian Mbappe by Wesley Sneijder
It will hurt Leicester that they could have captured an incredible striker by showing some ambition in January 2022.
A signing of his class could have also prevented their relegation from the top flight in 2023 but it wasn’t to be, and he now looks destined to join Liverpool.
In March 2022, former Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder even compared Ekitike to a mix of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
“I might say something really crazy, but I’ll say it anyway: I think he’s a mix between Neymar and [Kylian] Mbappé. I sincerely think so,” Sneijder told Foot Mundo.
“He has the grace of Neymar, but also the movements of Mbappé.
“To suddenly accelerate, that’s something that Mbappé also has. And he’s only 22 years old. There’s really a lot of potential in this boy.”