Leicester City dropped some huge news on Wednesday, ending one of the last big questions of the transfer window. Instead of trying to seek a big-money move, Riyad Mahrez has opted to sign a new contract with the Foxes.
Riyad Mahrez signs new contract with Leicester City, who refuses to fade into Premier League mediocrity
The Foxes aren’t going away.
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He's signed! #lcfc magician @Mahrez22 commits future with new deal to 2020!
— Leicester City (@LCFC) August 17, 2016
Full story: https://t.co/t2PrGpmOJo pic.twitter.com/cRSTwNJq5a
Mahrez follows Jamie Vardy in signing a new deal despite major interest from Europe's top clubs. Leicester accepted a bid from Arsenal for Vardy before Euro 2016, but Vardy opted to decline the Gunners' offer to stay put. With Mahrez doing the same, he's looking less likely to regret that decision.
Leicester did lose one of their top players this summer, N’Golo Kante, who couldn’t resist the lure of Chelsea. But despite losing Kante, Leicester has done extremely well to get two of their top three players from their improbable title-winning season to sign new contracts. Nampalys Mendy is also just about the best Kante replacement the Foxes could have hoped for, while Ahmed Musa looks like an excellent new signing.
Mahrez signing a new contract will also help Leicester’s recruitment efforts over the next two weeks, if they choose to make any more signings. Top players might be skeptical about joining a team whose best player is expected to leave, but with Mahrez signing a new contract, new recruits will know they’re not boarding a sinking ship.
The chances of Leicester repeating as Premier League champions are minimal, but that’s not really what their goal is. They’d like to advance in Champions League while staying in the race for top four late into the season. And by keeping Mahrez, they’ve given themselves a chance to do just that.
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