Leicester City most expensive signings ever

Just like everything in life, football too has its own ups and downs. Each player, each manager and basically each club gets to experience both the good and the bad, rising to fame and glory, followed by a downfall of sorts. Of course not everyone gets to experience the ride the same way, as there those who start with humble beginnings and prove themselves to the world with nothing but only a spark.

That is how

, along with unimaginable effort from the players, managed to make their presence known by winning the 2015/16 Premier League title in an unbelievable season that saw one of the underdogs of England’s top-flight the usual top-four teams to the title. Since becoming one of the few proud winners of the Premier League some five years ago, the Foxes have also proven to the world that they were not “one season wonders” as they have continued in their winning ways by staying on the top half of the table, challenging for a top-six finish.

Since their magical league success with Claudio Ranieri in 2015, the club have received immense financial strength, thanks to the generous prize money that came with the trophy. It is simple, earning money means you can buy more and probably better players, and that is what the club have done ever since, as they have made all of the

most expensive signings in Leicester City history

in the last five years. Even so, it does not make it any less of an achievement to be on such a list alongside a handful of other footballers.

Although there are a number of quite talented players on the list of most expensive Leicester City signings ever, some fans might believe that there would not have been a need for some of these signings, had their league-winning stars opted to stay at the club, rather than leaving for bigger and more successful rivals in the same league. In any case, let us see who Leicester City’s all-time most expensive signings are.

Most expensive Leicester City signings ever

Before we get to have a more in-depth look at each player’s performance, here is a complete list of

Leicester City most expensive signings ever

, that we have prepared for your convenience:

• Caglar Soyuncu - €21M

• Ricardo Pereira - €22M

• Timothy Castagne - €24M

• James Maddison - €25M

• Adrien Silva - €25M

• Kelechi Iheanacho - €27.5M

• Islam Slimani - €30.5M

• Ayoze Perez - €33.5M

• Wesley Fofana - €35M

• Youri Tielemans - €45M

How well do you think these players have fared so far at the

side? To answer that question, we should take a better look at their individual stats before and after joining the Foxes to see if they have been worth spending such hefty amounts of money on.

Caglar Soyuncu

• Price: €21M

The Izmir-born Turkish defender is one of the brightest prospects to have joined the club in recent years. Although he did not get to make an impact in his first season at the King Power stadium, he did manage to prove his worth by becoming an integral part of the starting XI by his second season in the Premier League. Caglar Soyuncu became one of the most expensive signings in Leicester City history when he completed a move from

to the Premier League club for a reported fee of €21 million.

Such a high transfer fee put a lot of pressure on the now 24-year-old defender, but he has certainly managed to overcome the challenges and has proven himself, according to some, to be one of Leicester City’s best defenders ever as well. Although such a claim is up to debate, we cannot hide the fact that Soyuncu has been on phenomenal form considering his level of play. Since joining the 2015 Premier League champions in 2018, the center-back has made a total of 44 appearances for the Foxes, making 13 clean sheets while conceding 44 goals in those games.

Keeping a 1:1 goals conceded per game ratio might seem easy, but it is tougher than one might think as there are numerous variables at any one time, especially in the Premier League, where some of the best teams in the world compete for the league title. Being one of

Leicester City’s all-time most expensive signings

,

has already proven his worth by showing admirable displays week in week out, as his current market value has more than doubled since joining his current club two year ago.

Unfortunately for both the player and the team, the Turkish talent has been sidelined for almost a month due to a Tear in the abductor muscle injury, which has definitely kept him from repeating his feats from the last season. But he is bound to bounce back and make a comeback if he keeps his efforts and hard work to the maximum level. Who knows? One day he might be able to prove worthy of being on the list of Leicester City highest transfer fee paid ever, even to the most skeptical of fans.

Ricardo Pereira

• Price: €22M

As one of the

most expensive Leicester City signings ever

, Ricardo Pereira has been able to become quite a vital part of his side’s squad ever since moving to the King Power stadium. But before completing one of the most expensive Leicester City transfers of all time, the Portuguese right-back was on loan at OGC Nice from the Primeira Liga side,

, who had in turn acquired Pereira from another Portuguese club, named Vitoria Guimaraes SC for about €1 million.

Pereira only got to make 77 appearances for his former club, as he was not as effective as he currently is and did not get many chances to play before. After impressing on his loan spell in Ligue 1 with

, and after becoming an important part Porto upon his return, eyes were locked on him as he was pursued by some of the top clubs in Europe. Of course, in the end, he did complete one of Leicester City most expensive transfers ever for €22 million.

Nowadays, however, Leicester City fans might be a little worried, as the 27-year-old right-back might face quite a dip in form due to his months-long injury, which even ended his season sooner than expected last time around. Now, after a couple of months of watching his teammates from the sidelines, Ricardo Pereira might be itching to once again prove everyone why he is one of the most expensive signings in Leicester City history.

Timothy Castagne

• Price: €24M

Next on our list of

Leicester City most expensive signings ever

, is the 24-year-old right-midfielder and right-back, Timothy Castagne, who has recently joined the club as more of a replacement for the long injured Ricardo Pereira. It is, however, too early to give any kind of a verdict on how Castagne has fared at Leicester City, as has only made a handful of appearances for his new club since moving to the Premier League side for €24 million.

While we cannot judge the Belgian talent based on his performance at his new club, we could at least have a more detailed look at his performance for his previous club. Before completing one of Leicester City most expensive transfers ever, Castagne used to play for the Serie A side,

, whom he had joined in 2017 from

for €6.5 million.

Even though he initially spent a majority of his time on the bench, he did manage to break into the team’s starting XI later on as he went on to make a total of 96 appearances across all competitions, even scoring 8 goals and providing 10 assists in those appearances, before finally putting pen on paper and moving to his new club for a hefty fee.

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James Maddison

• Price: €25M

When James Maddison joined the Foxes from

for a reported fee of €25 million and became one of the players on the list of

Leicester City most expensive signings ever

, he quickly became an integral part of his team as his transfer market value soared and more than doubled over time. The 23-year-old attacking midfielder has played in more than 85 games since joining Leicester City in 2018, and has managed to 19 goals and 13 assists to his all-time tally.

Before the 2020/21 season, Maddison used to be an irreplaceable member of the starting XI, as he played the whole 90-minutes in most matches since his arrival with a lot of promise, which even suggested a bright future for the Englishman at an international level as well. Unfortunately, the young talent has been through a rough patch lately, as he has been dropped from the starting XI, being completely sidelined for a number of the club’s ten recent matches.

Luckily, the tides seem to be turning to his side once again, as one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever plans on getting back on the team sheet and make it to the

and get called up for international duty.

Adrien Silva

• Price: €25M

Adrien Silva is undoubtedly a candidate for Leicester City biggest flop of the decade. The

academy graduate was loved by everyone at his home club, but he wanted more out of his life and needed tougher challenges, which is why he opted to complete one of the

most expensive Leicester City transfers of all time

and move to the King Power stadium for a hefty price of €25 million.

Even though the Portuguese central-midfielder was on the list of Leicester City highest transfer fee paid ever, he did not even get to play as many games as the number of millions the Foxes had to pay in order to acquire his services from the

side. Overall, Adrien Silva only made 21 appearances in two disappointing seasons, and after spending another season on loan at Monaco, his contract was terminated a year early by the club officials, even though he was one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever.

Kelechi Iheanacho

• Price: €27.5M

Next on our list of Leicester City most expensive signings ever, is Kelechi Iheanacho, who moved to his current club from

with a reported price tag of €27.5 million in 2017. The center-forward had initially arrived with a lot of promise. After all, he was one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever and the expectations were quite high from a player on such a list.

It seems, however, that the 23-year-old striker has not been able to find his feet as a regular starter, as he seems to serve the purpose of a set of fresh lungs in the dying minutes of the game. Iheanacho usually gets subbed on to the pitch in the last quarter of the match to give the team’s final third a boost, which might be pretty disappointing, especially for the player and the fans who thought that completing one of

Leicester City most expensive transfers ever

would guarantee the Nigerian center-forward’s imminent success at the club.

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Islam Slimani

• Price: €30.5M

Islam Slimani is yet another one of Leicester City’s flops of the decade, even though his name on the list of

Leicester City highest transfer fee paid ever

since his big money move from Sporting CP to the Premier League side in 2016, which saw the Foxes pay a staggering €30.5 million in order to bring in the 28-year-old center-forward, who did not even get to make it to 15 goals in total.

That is the unfortunate truth, that the Algerian center-forward, while one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever, only managed to score 13 goals in 47 appearances, while adding another 7 assists across all competitions. These stats clearly show how terrible of an investment Slimani actually was for Leicester, as they have had to send him on numerous loans to clubs such as

, Fenerbahce and Monaco over the years.

Now at the age of 32, Slimani is back at his own club after a loan spell at

, with his current market value being a fifth of what the club had actually paid to bring him in. The central midfielder, while still on the list of Leicester City most expensive signings ever, is not considered to be an integral part of the squad and awaits his fate as time passes quickly for the aging footballer.

Ayoze Perez

• Price: €33.5M

Our next man on the list of Leicester City most expensive signings ever, is the Spanish winger Ayoze Perez, who is originally a

academy graduate. Although he did start his senior career with the Spanish side, he quickly moved to Newcastle United for a reported fee of €2 million in 2014, where he actually started to gain prominence with a number of outstanding performances. His run at Newcastle was quite impressive, as he managed to score 48 goals and provide 17 assists in 195 games across all competitions.

Since becoming one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever in 2019, the 27-year-old Spaniard has been able to prove his worth by becoming an integral part of his team and playing in most of the matches since his arrival. Overall, Perez has managed to score 8 goals and provide 5 assists in a total of 48 appearances so far. We will have to wait and see how he continues his form at his current club.

Wesley Fofana

• Price: €35M

is not only one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever, but he is also one of the club’s most recent arrivals. It might actually surprise some to know that the 19-year-old center back is already on such a list, playing for a formidable side in the Premier League. But that is the way football has been going towards in the past couple of years and will surely continue moving in this direction.

Although the 1.9m tall center-back is one of Leicester City most expensive signings ever, he has not made enough appearances for us to give a fair verdict on his performance. What is more interesting is the fact that his lack of games is not exclusive to Leicester, and with the added game time from his spell at the Ligue 1 side,

, he has only made 37 appearances throughout his whole career, which makes it quite difficult to have an in-depth look at his play style.

However, he seems to be one of brightest center-backs of the new generation of footballers and we are eagerly waiting to see him realize his full potential. Of course for the time being, he is considered to be a talented player, who has managed to put his name on the list of Leicester City most expensive signings ever after his €35 million move away from Saint-Etienne.

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Youri Tielemans

• Price: €45M

Leicester City finally opted to sign the 23-year-old Youri Tielemans from Monaco after a half a season loan in 2019, as the young talent showed his immense abilities in the midfield. After signing him from

for €25 million in 2017, AS Monaco decided to agree to the €45 million deal in 2019 and send one of the brighter talents of the new generation of footballers to the Premier League.

Since joining the Foxes in 2018 on loan and later in 2019 on a permanent deal, the

international has been on fantastic form and has turned into an untouchable and irreplaceable part of Leicester City’s starting XI. In total, he has made over 65 appearances for the Filberts, scoring an impressive 11 goals and providing 13 assists. The Belgian’s performance at both club level and on the international stage has earned him quite a lot of accolades from everyone, including Roberto Martinez, Belgium’s national team manager.

The future seems to be bright for the young midfielder, whom we are surely going to see a lot more of in the coming years, that is of course if he continues his exceptional form for both his club and country.

Today’s list of Leicester City’s most expensive transfers ever might have ended, but it definitely is not the end for the English club, as they will be planning on breaking their transfer records time and time again until they build the ultimate squad to challenge for the title once again. It is only a matter of time before a new player comes along to sit on top of the list with an even more ridiculous transfer fee. Who do you believe will be the next big signing for the Foxes in the future?

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