Is it likely Leicester will sign Takehiro Tomiyasu? FoL’s verdict

Even though Leicester City have already made four signings, they are still looking on the market for further additions; a testament to the clubs’ ambition.

The latest Foxes target, according to sport witness, now comes in the form of defender Takehiro Tomiyasu who currently plays for Bologna. This is an interesting proposition considering he was linked with Spurs earlier this window. On the face of it, Tomiyasu ticks many boxes; these being his relative youth combined with international and top-league experience, as well as his versatility.

During his career, Tomiyasu has thrived as both a right-back/right-wing-back; but also as a defender in both a back four and back three. Therefore you can see why such a player would appeal to Rodgers.

As a player, Tomiyasu would be a substantial upgrade on Daniel Amartey. This is no slight towards the Ghanaian, who has been defensively excellent in his last two games. Regardless, Amartey’s limitations on the ball are an issue, which Tomiyasu would go some way to solving.

Being able to play line-breaking passes as well as carry the ball forward would make LCFC less one-dimensional in build-up than they are currently, and would help fill the void left by Fofana and Evans.

Unlike Vestergaard, the Japanese also has considerable pace which would be necessary for Brendan Rodgers’ high line. This could create interesting tactical dilemmas for the manager, and provide much-needed rotation options as LCFC look to progress on multiple fronts.

Unlike Madueke, the selling club are unlikely to cause many issues as the Italians are willing to sell to fund their own purchases. As such, they have ‘have mandated both his agent and an intermediary to negotiate with the English club’ as per Corriere Dello Sport. The report goes onto say that a transfer will then depend on how much Leicester City are willing to pay.

Regarding the likelihood of this transfer, it’s difficult to say as Leicester City have been willing to spend even when its clear finances have been limited. Due to Vestergaard’s arrival, it’s probably unlikely Leicester will move for another CB unless they can’t get a right-winger. If Tomiyasu were to arrive, then it wouldn’t be inconceivable for Ricardo Pereira to be moved onto the wing, with Tomiyasu and Castagne competing for the right-back position.

Crucially, this is just hypothetical currently, as without inside access it’s difficult to put a finger on how much more the budget will stretch, and also such a deal would likely depend on player sales too.

It’s understandable that Leicester City would like more depth at centre-back, especially with the injury-prone Jonny Evans out for another month. Nevertheless, FoL would advocate that remaining funds should be pooled to purchase a right-winger instead, as the centre-back crisis is not half as bad as it was several weeks ago.