Rumour: Barcelona to pursue Riyad Mahrez but Leicester City want at least £40m

What’s the story?

According to reports, La Liga giants Barcelona are looking to add to the attacking talents in their squad by signing Riyad Mahrez this summer. The Leicester City winger has reportedly been told about the interest and is looking forward to the move.

However, The Foxes will not allow the Algeria international to go for cheap. The defending Premier League champions are readying themselves for a bid from the Catalan club and, according to The Telegraph, they may not allow Mahrez to leave for anything less than a transfer fee of £40m.

In case you didn’t know...

Mahrez signed for Leicester City in 2014 for a fee of approximately €500K but it was in the 2015/16 season that Mahrez came into his own as the Premier League’s best. In what was a fairytale season, Leicester City won the title by overcoming 5000/1 odds and Mahrez walked away with the PFA Player of the Year thanks to his 17 goals and 11 assists.

Arsenal had been linked with the 26-year-old last summer but he eventually signed a new four-year contract that extended his stay at the King Power Stadium to 2020. But he did state that he would consider offers from “two or three clubs”.

The heart of the matter

This is not the first time Mahrez has been linked with the La Liga champions. Mahrez has also never shied away from questions about playing alongside Lionel Messi, saying, “One day, maybe. Why not?” when he was asked last February. Even former Barcelona player Xavi had claimed that Mahrez could play for Barcelona in the future.

When Mahrez signed the contract extension last summer, no release clause was inserted in the contract. This will give Leicester City the upper hand at the negotiation table should Barcelona approach them. His current market value is approximately €30m but the Foxes will hold out for much more than that knowing it is Barcelona.

Mahrez has had a season to forget following the 2015/16 title triumph. This season, he has only scored five goals in the league to go with a paltry two assists. The poor performances from most of the Foxes also saw title-winning manager Claudio Ranieri sacked as the Foxes were genuinely looking at the possibility of relegation.

However, his Champions League performances have come in for some praise thanks to four goals and two assists. The Foxes are also in the quarter-finals of the competition where they take on Atletico Madrid.

Video: Mahrez goals and assists (2015/16)

Author’s take

Mahrez leaving Leicester City seems like a foregone conclusion. There were moments during games where the winger looked completely disinterested in the game – even when poor Ranieri was shouting instructions at him.

While the Foxes seem to have improved their form following the appointment of Craig Shakespeare as Ranieri’s replacement and may avoid relegation, they will not qualify for the Champions League next season unless they win the trophy this season.

He will shrug this season off as a one-off (just like Eden Hazard did with the 2015/16 season) and will be back to his best. It only remains to be seen whether it will be in a Barcelona shirt or even that of another Premier League team.