Aston Villa’s head of football operations Monchi has held talks with Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheancho’s camp ahead of a proposed summer move.
According to Football Insider, the Premier League side is keen to strengthen their attacking options for next year.
This has led them to the pursuit of the Foxes striker, who is currently out of contract in June.
Iheanacho signed for the Foxes in 2017, and has been a regular presence in the side over the last seven years.
He featured 23 times in the Championship this term, contributing five goals and one assist, as Enzo Maresca’s team earned promotion straight back to the top flight, but he has been playing second and third fiddle for the last few months to Jamie Vardy and Patson Daka.
Leicester City's Kelechi Iheanacho transfer latest
It is looking increasingly likely that Iheanacho’s time at the King Power Stadium is coming to an end this year.
The forward is seemingly set to part company with Leicester ahead of the expiration of his contract in the summer, which means he will be free to sign for another club for nothing.
Villa are currently the front-runners in the race for his signature, with the influential Monchi now getting involved with transfer talks.
The Spaniard has reportedly spoken with the forward’s camp in a bid to persuade him to join the Midlands outfit.
Harry Winks makes admission on Jamie Vardy’s Leicester City future
Winks has made his stance very clear on Vardy's future, with the striker's deal expiring this summer.Villa have enjoyed a successful campaign under Unai Emery, despite Thursday night’s Europa Conference League disappointment to Olympiacos.
Emery’s side are set to qualify for European competition again next year, and just need three points from their final two games to confirm their place in the Champions League.
This will be the club’s first campaign back in the European Cup since they were the holders in 1982/83.
It has been reported that Iheanacho has rejected a contract offer from Leicester, and the allure of competing in Europe’s elite competition could be attractive to the Nigerian.
And it is also believed that Iheanacho is being targeted as a secondary option to Ollie Watkins, who has enjoyed an impressive season for Villa in the Premier League.
Kelechi Iheanacho's Leicester City career has been a mixed bag
Iheanacho signed for the Leicestershire outfit in the summer of 2017 from Manchester City in a deal worth a reported £25 million.
He was part of the team’s FA Cup win in 2021, the first ever triumph in the competition in the club’s history.
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Kelechi Iheanacho - Leicester City league goals and appearances (per Fbref.com) |
||||
|
Season |
Appearances (Starts) |
Goals (Assists) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
2018-19 |
30 (9) |
1 (3) |
||
|
2019-20 |
20 (12) |
5 (3) |
||
|
2020-21 |
25 (16) |
12 (2) |
||
|
2021-22 |
26 (13) |
4 (5) |
||
|
2022-23 |
28 (11) |
5 (5) |
||
|
2023-24 |
23 (10) |
5 (1) |
||
The striker also helped the Foxes secure European qualification with consecutive fifth place finishes in 2020 and 2021.
However, Iheanacho fell down the pecking order in 2024 under Maresca, appearing just four times in the Championship after the turn of the year as the team won the second division title.
Kelechi Iheanacho’s Leicester City departure is now inevitable
It is no surprise that Iheanacho has turned down an offer to remain at Leicester given how his game time fell off a cliff in recent months.
The opportunity to compete in the Champions League with Villa will be very enticing, even if it means playing second choice to Watkins.
There is no guarantee he would be first choice if he remained at the King Power either, so the jump up to competing in Europe is an obvious upgrade.
Iheanacho was a high earner at Leicester, so perhaps losing him from their wage bill will be a net positive in the long run, even if it means they won’t get a transfer fee from his sale.