Football
Exclusive: Leicester City Set to Offload Boubakary Soumaré in January
Leicester City are set to offload French midfielder Boubakary Soumare in January for around £10 million before his contract expires in June. The club aims to strengthen the squad with the proceeds. Soumare, now in his fifth year at the club, has fallen down the pecking order after their relegation. Sevilla, Roma, and Monaco are interested in signing him.
Leicester City v ACF Fiorentina - Pre-Season Friendly by Michael Regan | Getty Images
Leicester City are looking to offload midfielder Boubakary Soumaré once the January transfer window opens, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
The Foxes are desperate to bank come cash for the Frenchman before his deal expires in June next year.
And our sources understand the club, who are gunning to win promotion back to the Premier League this season, are looking to land in the region of £10million for the 26-year-old.
Soumare has started most of the Foxes’ fixtures so far this season, but recently dropped to the substitute’s bench for the club’s 3-1 away win over Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium.
And SportsBoom understands Foxes boss Marti Cifuentes is happy for the former France Under-21 international to leave, providing the price is right.
The money the club would make from any potential sale would be used to strengthen the squad when the transfer window re-opens.
Soumare is now in his fifth and what could be his final season with the club, with his third season spent on loan with Spanish outfit Sevilla in La Liga.
PECKING ORDER
He has plenty of Premier League experience having played 76 games for the Foxes in the top-flight, but he has fallen down the pecking order during a turbulent 12 months for the club following their relegation back to the second tier.
Soumare, who has just marked 100 appearances for the former Premier League champions, signed for the Foxes on a five-year deal in July 2021.
Former loan club Sevilla have already expressed an interest in trying to sign the defensive midfielder when the window re-opens.
Italian side Roma and French Ligue 1 club Monaco have also been linked with the player, with the Foxes set to try and make some return on their initial outlay before the player could potentially leave on a free transfer next summer.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.