Leicester City may leave Sheffield Wednesday raging over George Hirst.
According to The Mirror, George Hirst’s time with OH Leuven may end in January as he will be lined up for a move to Leicester City, leaving Sheffield Wednesday out of pocket.
Hirst, 19, is the son of former Sheffield Wednesday hero David Hirst, and having been born in the Steel City, he cam up through the Wednesday ranks to start his career.
The 6ft 3in striker may have hit 14 goals in 27 games for England across various youth levels, but he was restricted to just two first-team appearances for the Owls due to a contract stand-off.
Wednesday knew that Hirst’s deal would be expiring this summer, and with no sign of him penning an extension, they froze him out of action until he would commit to a new contract – and he chose not to.
Hirst has now move on to Belgium with OH Leuven, playing under former Leicester City boss Nigel Pearson, but there appears to be a plot afoot involving Leicester.
OH Leuven are a sister club of the Foxes, and The Mirror report that Hirst will eventually join Leicester, potentially even as soon as January, with Claude Puel’s men seemingly set to leave Wednesday fuming.
Had Hirst moved directly to the King Power Stadium, Leicester would have been forced to pay a huge compensation fee to sign the striker at the end of his contract.
Yet by first moving to Belgium, OH Leuven only have to pay minimal compensation due to him signing for a non-English club, yet his final destination will still be Leicester – and the sequence of moves will leave Wednesday out of pocket.
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