Why Amadou Diawara would be a good addition to the Leicester City squad
According to Corriere dello Sport (h/t Leicestershire Live), Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers is keeping close tabs on Roma midfielder Amadou Diawara.
The 23-year-old Diawara joined Roma for £18million from rivals Napoli last summer but has struggled with a meniscus injury in his maiden season with them. A defensive midfielder by trade, Diawara made 19 Serie A appearances this season and has kept four clean sheets, giving a glimpse of his talent.
However, an injury-hit first season at the Olimpico di Roma has now forced the Italian side to put the £27million-rated Diawara on sale. Despite his difficult maiden season with Roma, the young Guinean is an experienced campaigner, having featured 74 times for Napoli during his three-year spell there.
He is also a regular within his national side, making 10 appearances in total since his debut back in October 2018. Having proved his potential already for both the club and the country, it is not a big surprise Leicester are in the hunt for the young Diawara.
Diawara can offer Leicester good strength in the midfield
Meanwhile, Leicester’s finish this time in the league rankings will have a major impact on the future of their star midfielder Wilfred Ndidi. The Foxes are fourth in the table (at the time of writing) and defensive midfielder Ndidi has been attracting a lot of interest from rival clubs including Chelsea following his displays this season.
Ndidi has been a main feature in Rodgers’ side and has made 31 Premier League appearances this season, signifying his worth within the current line-up.
However, apart from Ndidi, Leicester lack an established holding midfielder in their squad, with the rest being young Hamza Choudhury and out-of-favour midfielders Daniel Amartey and Nampalys Mendy.
Choudhury is just 22 and has often been used as a back-up this season, while Amartey and Mendy together have featured just eight times in the league, giving indications that they are clearly not manager Rodgers’ favourites.
With Ndidi’s future at the King Power Stadium still a question mark, Leicester’s decision to monitor Diawara’s situation makes complete sense. Also, if the Foxes manage to grab a Champions League spot next season, they could really do with a midfielder in the mould of Diawara.
Hence, they should continue their pursuit of young Diawara as signing him will add more strength to their squad and enable them to stay in the top-four next season.
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Verdict
Though Leicester have enough depth in defensive midfield, none has been as consistent as Ndidi. That said, if the Nigerian chooses to depart this summer, Leicester would need someone to replace him. Diawara, though young, is a seasoned player, having proved himself already in Serie A.
