Leicester confirm signing of Kelechi Iheanacho on five-year contract

The 22-year-old forward joins the Foxes from Manchester City for an undisclosed fee

Samuel Lovett
Thursday 03 August 2017 14:52 EDT
Comments
Kelechi Iheanacho joins from Manchester City
Kelechi Iheanacho joins from Manchester City (Getty)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Leicester City have confirmed the signing of Kelechi Iheanacho from Manchester City.

The 22-year-old forward joins the former Premier League champions on a five year-contract for an undisclosed fee.

Leicester agreed a fee and terms for the Nigeria international nearly four weeks ago but a row over image rights held up the transfer until earlier this week.

​Iheanacho joins the Foxes after three years at Manchester City where he rose through the ranks of the club's academy system before making his senior debut in 2015.

Speaking to LCFC TV, Iheanacho said: “It feels good and I’m happy to be part of this team. I know the ambition of the team and speaking with the manager, he let me know what I need to do – to help the team achieve what they want. I was convinced and I’m happy to be here.

“I was happy speaking with the manager, knowing what the team wants. It gives me more confidence that I will fit in this team and hopefully I’ll achieve a lot.”

Leicester City manager Shakespeare added: “It’s a great signing for us. Kelechi is an enormously talented player that has shown a huge amount of promise at every level in which he’s played.

“We’ve tracked his progress for some time, so we know how much quality he’ll bring to the squad. He’s young, he’s hungry, he’s ready for the next stage of his development and I’m delighted that will be with Leicester City.”

Leicester secured Iheanacho's signature ahead of a number of interested parties, with Tottenham, West Ham United and Monaco all believed to be interested.

The Nigerian joins Harry Maguire, Vicente Iborra and Eldin Jakupovic as Leicester's latest summer signing.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in