Trusted reporter says Leicester City Football Club is not up for sale

After a turbulent pre-season with cash withheld from the Brendan Rodgers, speculation has been increasing that Leicester City could be put on the market. The club’s ownership spent money on only Wout Faes for a percentage of the Wesley Fofana transfer fee, but one creditable source insists that this is not down to an impending sale.

Rob Tanner, writing in a Q&A mailbag for the Athletic, told Foxes fans that while Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha is still incredibly wealthy, no Premier League club’s owner has been affected more by the pandemic. The duty free and lack of tourism theory has been longed explored, and it appears now this, combined with the Seagrave training ground and proposed stadium expansion, has left the club with very little to attract new players.

In the same post, Tanner reinforced Rodgers’ surprise at returning to work this pre-season to find that the squad overhaul he had hoped for was not possible. The financial situation meant that incomings depended on outgoings, which simply didn’t come until Fofana late on, with most at the club expecting Youri Tielemans to depart.

Khun Top had intimated in his programme notes ahead of the Manchester United defeat that the lack of investment in the squad this summer was with a view to the long-term stability and sustainability of the East Midlands club. There have even been whispers that the Foxes hierarchy are reluctant to relieve Brendan Rodgers of his duties due to the cost that this would incur.

Relegation is now a realistic possibility, unbelievably, and the Chairman now has a huge decision to make in weighing up the costs of sacking his manager versus the loss of income that a drop to the second tier could bring. Leicester sit rock bottom and adrift in the Premier League after six straight defeats, conceding 11 goals in their last two fixtures.

City host Nottingham Forest in an East Midlands derby on Monday, the first of five important games that could either kickstart the Foxes’ season, or push them into even more trouble. If the manager fails to navigate his side to a win next week or thereafter, Khun Top may have no choice but to pull the trigger.