Leicester City may not know which league they will be playing in next season, but plans will already be in place to identify possible summer transfer targets.
A summer of change is expected at the King Power Stadium, where several Leicester players are expected to leave.
Retaining their Premier League status would attract more quality without a doubt but there will still be plenty of suitors if the Foxes are in the Championship – especially as they’ll be one of the favourites.
A position that will certainly need improvement in is the striker position and the perfect Jamie Vardy replacement may have been found.
Leicester City told to sign Josh Sargent in summer transfer window
Vardy is ageing, Patson Daka is likely to depart and Odsonne Edouard certainly won’t be staying beyond his loan. That means attackers are required.
They don’t come cheap and they are often in short supply but during an episode of the Saturday Social on Sky Sports, James Allcott stated that the Foxes should be going for Norwich City forward Josh Sargent.
He said: “I’ve gone for Josh Sargent. His conversion rate is the best it’s been since he’s been with Norwich (24 per cent).
“A few injuries here and there and he’s still only 25.
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“I think with Leicester, who I expect to go down, in the striking position you need a Championship bagsman and that’s what Sargent will provide. The striker position is an area they need to improve to get them straight back.”
Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images
Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images
Is Josh Sargent an upgrade on Jamie Vardy for next season?
Allcott is right in that Leicester’s attack will need a refresh, but does Sargent offer more than what Vardy can do right now?
In short, the answer is yes. Not only has Sargent scored more goals than the 38-year-old, he’s also outperforming his xG, with his 13 goals this season outweighing the 11.2 he was predicted.
Stats Josh Sargent Jamie Vardy
Goals 13 7
xG 11.2 9.2
Shots 50 46
Shots on target 25 19
Conversation rate (%) 24% 13%
Stats via FBref for league matches only
As for Vardy, he is slightly underperforming in the Premier League, scoring seven goals whereas his xG is 9.2
Where Sargent is most impressive is the number of shots he gets on target, with 50 per cent of his 50 shots on goal hitting the target this season. Vardy on the other hand is slightly lower having hit the target with 19 of his 40 shots.
Of course, the big elephant in the room is the age of the two. With 13 years separating the two, there is more energy in the legs of Sargent although any move to sign him may face competition from top flight clubs