Which out-of-contract players should Leicester City keep this summer
By Matt Taylor
Wes Morgan
Wes Morgan has been a constant at the King Power ever since his switch across the East Midlands from Nottingham Forest. The Jamaican international became Leicester captaincy mere months after joining, and has never given us any reason to doubt this decision.
A superb servant to the club, he played every single minute of the Foxes’ Premier League winning season, while only missing one game in 2013/14 as they lifted the Championship trophy. He has undoubtedly been at the root of City’s recent successes and his influence at the club cannot be understated.
Also, we must not forget some of the monumental goals he has scored along the way, most notably, guiding the ball in with his thigh against Sevilla in the Champions League knockout stages to famously take Leicester into the last eight. Not to mention, two pivotal headers against Southampton and at Old Trafford in 2015/16.
However, Leicester’s Mr.Reliable has seen a decline in form this campaign. The 35-year-old has already collected two red cards, in games that City have proceeded to lose. He has looked sluggish at times, and does not seem to have the pace or agility to maintain his bullish style of defending. Most recently, this lack of pace left the Foxes skipper exposed as Leicester conceded four at Molineux.
Since then, the prospering partnership of Harry Maguire and Johnny Evans has seen Morgan dropped to the bench, with no drastic changes expected in the near future. Also, this summer will see the return of Filip Benkovic, who has been turning heads while on loan at Scottish champions, Celtic. A move that could see Morgan fall further down the pecking order.
Verdict:
The youthful strength-in-depth that City have at centre back (even with the likes of Darnell Johnson and Elliott Moore waiting in the wings), there is certainly less need for their club captain, who should be offered a coaching role and be phased out of the first-team squad. Hopefully, he does not return to his hometown of Nottingham to join Forest.