Leicester City sold five stars for £260m… then rebuilt the now £430m team that beat Chelsea in the FA Cup final

LEICESTER CITY won the FA Cup last season, as well as challenging for a place in the Champions League through shrewd business.

The Foxes have made a staggering £260 million on players they bought with just £18m since Jon Rudkin was appointed director of football in 2015.

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Better still, they were spent that money wisely about young players whose shares have risen.

According to Transfermarkt.com, Leicester’s squad is currently worth around £430m.

People who like James Maddison (£50m) and Caglar Soyuncu (£40m) could help boost the club’s finances in the coming years, if/when they move.

SALES CLUB

Despite winning the 2016 tournament championship, Brendan Rodgers’ men are still considered a semi-club club.

If the price is right, Leicester could be forced to accept offers for their star talents – at the rate of once a season.

And since 2016 they have reaped the benefits of the transfer recruitment process now overseen by Lee Congerton.

N’Golo Kante, a £6m signing from Caen, left Chelsea for £30m that year.

In 2017, it is Midfielder partner Danny Drinkwater who also moved to Stamford Bridge for a whopping £40m.

A year later, Riyad Mahrez moved to Manchester City for £60m, in 2019 Manchester United paid £80m for Harry Maguire, and last summer Ben Chilwell scored a hat-trick in Chelsea signings from Leicester in in recent years for £50 million.

Incredibly, those sales boosted their coffers by £260 million. What’s even more amazing is that they cost only £18 million.

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BUT THEY FORGET THE COMPETITION

Losing great players will make any team have a headache.

And while it could be argued that Leicester haven’t improved on their Premier League champions, they are certainly competitive as well.

Over the years, heavy investment in new signings, especially in young players, has helped the club continue to prosper.

Wilfred Ndidi, 24, arrived at King Power Stadium in 2017 from Genk for £20m.

The Nigeria international has grown to become one of the best defensive midfielders in the country and, according to Transfermarket.com, could cost at least £50m.

And James Maddison could collect an even bigger fee, if Leicester pour money into their property they shelled out £20m in 2018 from Norwich.

Reports last summer suggested that Arsenal would have to pay £70m for the player, if they wanted to take him away from King Power.

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Wesley Fofana, a £30m signing last summer, has been linked with a £80m move to Manchester United, incidentally the same fee the Reds paid Leicester for former centre-back Harry Maguire in 2019.

Transfermarket.com believes the Leicester City squad, whose average age is 27, is now worth around £430m.

RECRUITMENT TEAM

Much of that success can be attributed to a number of people who have engaged in recruiting over the years.

A transfer recruitment system has been established that was first set up by former head of recruitment Steve Walsh, who left the club in 2016.

Then came Eduardo Macia, who worked with Brendan Rodgers at Celtic, and now Lee Congerton – a former youth team coach at Chelsea who studies goals.

He’s helped by a team of analysts who watch extensive videos of games around the globe – following recommendations from scouts around the world.

The role of the head of recruitment is to evaluate players through as much analytical data and statistics as they receive.

If a player becomes a target, Congerton will fly anywhere in the world to personally look for the player in question.

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Information is passed on to Rodgers prior to conducting a background check on the individual, including their lifestyle, temperament, and personality.

Finally, director of football Jon Rudkin, supported by football executive Andrew Neville, to reach agreements and negotiate with other clubs.

You can bet they are in talks with promising new talent to come to Leicestershire, which will likely lead to a bigger fee in the coming years.