Super Eagles stars Kelechi Iheanacho and Wilfred Ndidi played a part as Leicester City claimed a 1-0 win over Northampton in a pre-season friendly on Saturday.
Super Eagles forward Kelechi Iheanacho and midfielder Wilfred Ndidi are in pre-season training with Leicester City despite the transfer news and rumours surrounding them.
After Leicester City got relegated last season, both men were touted to leave the club. While Ndidi’s future was still under speculation and a move to Saudi Arabia was rumoured, concrete links to José Mourinho’s AS Roma and Taiwo Awoniyi’s Nottingham Forest for Iheanacho sprung up in the transfer news scene.
With the new European football season close to its kickoff date, both Super Eagles stalwarts look to be preparing for another year with the Foxes.
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The best images from Sixfields 👇
— Leicester City (@LCFC) July 16, 2023
Ndidi and Iheanacho up the ante with Foxes teammates after Super Eagles duty
Kelechi Iheanacho and Wilfred Ndidi featured for the Super Eagles in June as they secured a ticket to the AFCON 2023 tournament which will be held in Ivory Coast next January.
They spent some time in Nigeria among friends and their teammates from the Nigeria national football team before going on holiday abroad. During that time, various transfer speculations sprung up concerning both players.
The fact that Leicester City also released most of their first team from the last Premier League season also contributed to the speculations about their futures. James Maddison made the switch to North London to join up with Tottenham Hotspur, Harvey Barnes is linked to Newcastle United and Aston Villa and the Foxes are in talks with all interested parties over a favourable deal, Youri Tielemans, Ghana Black Stars’ Daniel Amartey, and five other players were released after their contracts ended, and a lot of squad movement took place as well.
Both Super Eagles players are now with the Foxes as they prepare for their Thailand pre-season tour starting on 21 July and ending on 26 July 2023.
They participated in Leicester City’s 1 – 0 pre-season win at Northampton Town on Saturday, playing the last 30 minutes against the third-division side. It was their second game of pre-season and their first win in a packed schedule that will see them face off against Maddison and his new team Spurs, Liverpool and OH Leuven from the Belgian Jupiler Pro League.
The Super Eagles players also participated in the first pre-season game, a 2 -1 loss to Peterborough United. They came off the bench in that tie as well.
High-octane Kel 💡 pic.twitter.com/3x2Z46jDpz
— Leicester City (@LCFC) July 12, 2023
Daily Express journalist suggests Nottingham Forest look away from Super Eagles forward Iheanacho
As Iheanacho and his Super Eagles teammate Ndidi continue to improve their match fitness for the new season, Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor has suggested that ‘Senior Man’ should not be a target for Awoniyi’s Nottingham Forest.
Taylor expressed these sentiments to football media outlet GIVEMESPORT in a recent interview. “I've tried to do some digging into this one,” he said. “I do expect Iheanacho to leave the club [Leicester City]. I don't know whether that is a legitimate transfer link.
“However, I'm not sure about Iheanacho as a player. I think for Forest, he's a bit of an Emmanuel Dennis. He’s hit-and-miss. Forest probably need a bit more consistency.”
Iheanacho returned to relegated Leicester City's training with a smile.
Promotion straight? pic.twitter.com/UbdcEhFSrz
— POOJA!!! (@PoojaMedia) July 8, 2023
Nigeria national football team fans are excited about the prospect of Iheanacho and Awoniyi linking up on club level but Taylor’s comments could cause many to reconsider.
It remains to be seen where the former Manchester City talent will end up playing next season, but as Taylor said, he is closer to leaving the King Power than he is to staying at the club.
This article was most recently revised and updated 1 year ago
