Nampalys Mendy is ready to leave Leicester City to join Galatasaray before the Turkish transfer window closes later today, his agent has told FootMercato.
One of the club’s longest-serving players has breathed fresh life into his Foxes career before – forcing his way back into the first-team picture after falling out of favour in 2017 – but it seems unlikely history will repeat itself.
Because, with new £17 million signing Boubakary Soumare joining Wilfred Ndidi and the home-grown Hamza Choudhury at the King Power Stadium, there’s an argument Mendy is now Brendan Rodgers’ fourth-choice defensive midfielder.
And that’s without mentioning Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, the impressive 23-year-old who caught the eye in pre-season after excellent loan spells at Blackpool and Luton Town.
As a result, Mendy has little choice but look elsewhere if he wants to avoid spending a season on the sidelines.
Fortunately, the transfer market is still open in some far-flung European outposts and there’s one major football club in need of a hard-running number six.
Nampalys Mendy in ‘race against time’ to leave Leicester
“The two clubs are OK,” says Mendy’s agent, Yacine Ayad, suggesting an initial loan deal has been agreed between both parties.
“But the player must arrive in Dakar during the next few hours (Mendy played for Senegal at Congo last night and is travelling back to the Senagalese capital).
“It is therefore a race against time for him to arrive in Istanbul before 11.59pm and the end of the Turkish transfer window.”
Galatasaray have been around the houses this week, holding talks with former Tottenham Hotspur man Gedson Fernandes and Roma’s Amadou Diawara as their pursuit of a defensive midfielder hots up.
The Istanbul-based club was also looking at a deal for Arsenal’s Egypt international Mo Elneny.
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