Dundee United defender Lewis Neilson turned down a £500,000 move to Premier League dark horses Leicester City in the January transfer window, as reported by The Sun (February 7, page 60).
When you consider Brendan Rodgers has a remarkable track record of turning promising youngsters into elite-level performers – think Moussa Dembele, Youri Tielemans, James Maddison, Raheem Sterling, Kieran Tierney and Philippe Coutinho – you have to wonder why a talented teenage footballer would reject the chance to work with the Northern Irishman at the King Power.
But Neilson knows he’s on to a good thing at Dundee United.
The versatile defender has featured regularly in the Scottish Premiership this season.
In fact, Tangerines boss Micky Mellon has included him in the match-day squad for every one of the club’s 28 league fixtures in 2020/21.
The Sun reports Dundee United accepted a £500,000 offer from Leicester last month.
But Neilson turned down the move, fearing his first-team prospects would be damaged at a team that, in Caglar Soyuncu, Wesley Fofana and Jonny Evans, already has some of the most reliable central defenders in Britain at its disposal.
The Courier believes Leicester will make a fresh approach for Neilson in the summer.
But be warned. The fresh-faced Scot has little interest in playing reserve-team football, even at one of the Premier League’s most exciting and forward-thinking clubs.
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