Leicester City winger Demarai Gray has turned down moves to Crystal Palace and Southampton to test himself away from English football, according to The Sun (27 January, page 51).
At least Gray will always have that Premier League winner’s medal to remind him of his time at the King Power.
Then again, his role in that glorious 2015/16 season may feel bitter-sweet now – a reminder of the promise he showed at the start of his Leicester career.
Big things were expected of the former Birmingham City wonderkid but, while the arrival of Brendan Rodgers helped take the likes of James Maddison and even Jamie Vardy to the next level, Gray could be forgiven for pining for the Claude Puel era.
The former England U21 international has started just three league games since the start of 2019/20. This season, he’s played a grand total of 18 Premier League minutes.
And, with his contract expiring in July, The Sun reports Gray will be allowed to leave for £2 million before Monday’s deadline.
It’s easy to forget Leicester turned down a £25 million bid from Bournemouth not so long ago (Sky).
The report adds Gray will snub Palace or Southampton in favour of a move to mainland Europe, with Marseille, Monaco, RB Leipzig and Benfica interested.
However, given Ralph Hasenhuttl’s superb track record when it comes to helping talented players realise their potential, you wonder whether St Mary’s would be the ideal destination for a player who has promised so much but delivered rather little.
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