Brendan Rodgers keeps door open to reintegrate Wesley Fofana at Leicester
Chelsea have had three bids rejected for defender Fofana
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Your support makes all the difference.Boss Brendan Rodgers has kept the door open to reintegrate Wesley Fofana back into the Leicester squad if he fails to move to Chelsea.
The Blues have had three bids rejected for the defender ahead of next week’s transfer deadline.
Fofana is training with the Foxes’ Under-23s having missed a senior training session last week and will not feature when Leicester go to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
The latest bid, rejected on Tuesday morning, was worth £70million but – amid the transfer saga – Rodgers left a way back for Fofana if he stays at the King Power Stadium.
“It’s always about the commitment and when the players are ready to commit to the team and the ethos of the team,” he said. “It has been a challenge for Wesley, if you are not in the right frame of mind – and you have to respect the welfare of the player – we have to push on.
“The window will shut in the not-too distant future and a lot of things become much clearer after that finishes.
“He will not be available for the weekend. He has trained with the under-23 squad.
“I’m not sure (if there will be another bid), my concentration is with the players we have and the team. I can’t lose energy thinking so much about it. It is something which will be done between the clubs. Until that happens we have to continue to work with what we have.”
James Maddison is a doubt for the weekend and will be assessed on Friday after Rodgers said he felt a “twinge” in training.
Ryan Bertrand (knee) and Ricardo Pereira (Achilles) are also unavailable for Rodgers, who saw his side squeeze past League Two Stockport in the Carabao Cup on penalties on Tuesday.
The Foxes continue to look for their first Premier League win of the season and go to Chelsea with the hosts having lost 3-0 at Leeds on Sunday.
“You’ll get an ambition (from Chelsea) to want to put it right, it doesn’t make it any easier. We know that and expect the challenge,” added Rodgers.
“We go there with a view to get our first win. We don’t have to be the best team in the world to beat the biggest teams, we have shown that.”