Leicester City: Foxes close in on £55m Sporting Lisbon pair

After being linked all summer, Leicester City close in on their £55m signings of forward Islam Slimani and midfielder Adrien Silva from Sporting Lisbon.

A deal reportedly worth over £55m for the pair, Leicester City will be looking to smash their transfer record which has already been broken twice in this window by Nampalys Mendy (£10m) and Ahemed Musa (£16m).

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Should both deals go through, the foxes will be paying more for the Algerian international than for Mendy and Musa combined after reportedly accepting to pay the £34m fee Sporting Lisbon are holding out for.

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28 year old Slimani has scored 1 goal in 2 games this season, coming off the back of a fantastic season for the Champions League club and after playing his last game for the club this weekend, he left the pitch crying. Should he show that passion and devotion at the King Power stadium, he’ll be loved by foxes fans.

The 2015/16 season saw Islam Slimani being involved in 33 goals in 33 games in the Primeira Liga, scoring 27 of them.

Should the moved by completed, Slimani will be quick to settle into life in the East Midlands with fellow countryman and the Premier League ‘Player of The Season’ Ryiad Mahrez to help him with his new life in England.

It’s not only will Riyad be able to integrate Slimani into English Culture, as he won’t be alone.

Also coming from Sporting Lisbon is midfielder Adrien Silva, the 27 year old Portugal international.

Speaking to ‘O Jogo’, the Euro Championship winning midfielder admitted to accepting a proposal from Leicester City, saying:

"“Yes, I confirm this proposal. Leicester is very interesting and corresponds to my career goals.”"

"“After the past 15 years at Sporting, this opportunity is something exceptional for me and can allow me to express and impose myself in another championship, and also to evolve in the Premier League, which is a stunning league.”"

Leicester City’s interest in Silva may mean that they will not longer be interested in summer target Steven N’Zonzi, after reports this week linked the player to the Premier League champions.

Should Silva complete his move, it’ll pave the way for midfielder Matty James to go out on loan after missing the whole of last season with a knee injury that he suffered at the end of the 2014/15 season.

With Slimani also coming in, it could see Argentine Leonardo Ulloa leave as the foxes will already have Vardy, Musa, Slimani and possibly Okazaki to play as a striker.

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It would be wise however for Leicester City to keep as many players as possible with the upcoming Champions League games to play and should Leicester City finish at least third in their group, potentially many more games to play after the Christmas period.