Alaves winger an “object of desire” for Leicester City boss Claude Puel

Deportivo Alaves winger Ibai Gomez is an “object of desire” for Leicester City boss Claude puel, reports Mundo Deportivo.

In its Tuesday edition, the Spanish newspaper reserved a special mention for Puel’s penchant for Gomez as they wrote of the 29-year old’s situation at the Mendizorrotza Stadium.

Another Spanish outlet, AS, had earlier reported of Leicester’s interest in Gomez as well. They also stated that Leeds United and Athletic Bilbao – Gomez’s former club – could be interested in signing the Spaniard, too, so there’s no shortage of competition for Leicester. Needless to say that Bilbao will certainly have a little advantage in this race of sorts for obvious reasons.

After signing for the Los Leones in 2010 as a 21-year old, Gomez went on to make 145 appearances, scoring 17 goals and assisting 23 as well. In 2016, however, he terminated his contract at the club before signing a three-year deal with Alaves, which will expire next summer.

What it means is that Alaves aren’t in a very strong position to negotiate, and they are therefore willing to sell Gomez for €4 million despite his €10 million release clause. In today’s market, it is without a doubt an incredibly low price. Lionel Messi is paid more than that in seven months.

However, the deal being nice and cheap doesn’t mean it’s a good one. Leicester do need a forward, yes, but they need someone who’s world-class. Leicester don’t need another player who can barely get to seven goals in a season.

They need someone to complement Jamie Vardy and, later on, even replace him. Gomez isn’t the man for that job.