Leicester City’s three biggest transfer swindles rated and explained

Second: Harry Maguire

Perhaps a shock to see him only at second, it should be said that Harry Maguire is not a bad player whatsoever and, unlike Chilwell, never put in a half-hearted showing for Leicester. After suffering relegation with Hull City in 2017, the Foxes forked out £12m for the Sheffield-born centre back as they aimed to find a replacement for the retiring Robert Huth.

A strong and sturdy figure in the defensive line, Maguire soon became a fan favourite and scored some brilliant goals, including memorable strikes against Southampton and Manchester United. Maguire always played at the same level for Leicester in his 76 appearances for the team, and it was this consistency that led to him being called up to the England squad in 2017.

Gareth Southgate liked what he saw, and Maguire became a crucial part of his starting XI ahead of the 2018 World Cup. Becoming a cult hero for England fans, Maguire’s ‘slabhead’ netted against Sweden in the quarter-final before England lost to Croatia in the semis.

By then, Leicester fans could see that it may be difficult to hold onto Maguire, but a new 5-year-deal that summer meant he stayed in blue for the 2018/19 season. In 2019 though, the narrative was different, and soon a transfer saga between the Foxes and Manchester United had begun.

Holding firm in their asking price, the Leicester board wouldn’t be bullied into accepting anything lower than their £80m valuation for the defender. Maguire, fair play to him, never kicked up a fuss, and so all the pressure was on Manchester United. Eventually, that pressure buckled, and United got their man for £78.30m: a world record fee for a defender, one that still hasn’t been beaten.

Maguire enjoyed a positive start at United, and soon became their club captain. However, he soon found it hard to escape his £78m shadow. Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk set the bar for the standards of a centre half and Maguire simply couldn’t compare.

Maguire has made 139 appearances for the Red Devils during a mixed period for the club, and unfortunately their captain has become a scapegoat of their failures. Rather than focusing on the abysmal decision of the United board to sign him for, and I repeat, £78,300,000, fans have instead targeted Maguire for not being worth that price.

The issue for Manchester United is that they simply signed the wrong centre back. Jonny Evans used to be on their books until he was eventually pushed out of the squad and, after a strong few years at West Brom, Leicester signed him for chips. His presence drastically helped Maguire, as it did Soyuncu in Maguire’s absence.

Undoubtedly it was the Foxes who came off on the better side of this deal, with the move funding the transfers of Youri Tielemans and James Justin, as well as putting extra funds in for their stunning new training complex.