Leicester City find themselves mired in a full-blown midfield crisis that threatens to derail their Championship campaign just as the season reaches its most unforgiving stretch. The King Power treatment room has become increasingly crowded now that two more athletes have been added. With the devastating hamstring injury to creative linchpin Jordan James and the ongoing absence of Aaron Ramsey leaving the engine room looking alarmingly light. Compounding these woes is the concussion protocol currently sidelining Oliver Skipp, leaving interim manager Andy King with a skeleton crew of available senior options. The revitalised Oliver Skipp suffering a blow was annoying in particular. But nothing compared to losing James.
Could forgotten Fox Harry Winks potentially returning to Leicester City's starting lineup?
With Boubakary Soumare's departure to Al-Duhail now confirmed, the urgent necessity for reinforcements is no longer a matter of tactical preference but one of basic survival. Louis Page as a No.8 isn't the answer. The desperation of the situation has cast a renewed spotlight on Harry Winks, a player who has spent the last two months in the cold.
Harry Winks to save Leicester City's skin?
Speaking ahead of the clash with Charlton Athletic, interim LCFC boss Andy King acknowledged that he was not privy to the private disputes that saw Winks frozen out by Marti Cifuentes. Yet the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has, apparently, remained professional and active with the group.
The Premier League title-winner pointedly noted that a fresh pair of eyes and a "difference of opinion" can often reopen doors that previously seemed bolted shut. This sounds distinctly like a comeback is in the offing.
"he’s always been training, he’s been training with the group. And sometimes a difference of opinion can maybe open doors, sometimes it can’t. My focus has been on the team for Charlton. Then we’ll take a decision at the end of today, seeing how the week’s gone."Andy King - LCFC Live
Ultimately, the Foxes' hand has been forced by circumstance, if not Winks' implied professionalism. In spite of lingering narratives regarding the player's preference for a London proximity or his perceived detachment from matchday preparations under previous regimes. The LE2 team simply cannot afford to ignore a player of his pedigree in a darkening epoch.
The transfer window's final hours are rapidly ticking away and the squad is now stretched to breaking point in several areas. So LCFC genuinely need Winks back in the fold to provide stability and top-flight experience in a lower league that appears totally necessary to steady a sinking ship.
Supporters who don't want to see Winks again must ask themselves this question? Is Leicester hypothetically winning and stabilising more important than their personal views?!