Leicester City need to ensure that they are set for life after Jamie Vardy, journalist Darren Lewis has claimed.
The 34-year-old is set to be out for the foreseeable future as he deals with a hernia problem, and whilst they do have players who can contribute in his absence in the short-term with the likes of Harvey Barnes, James Maddison and Youri Tielemans all capable of finding the back of the net, Lewis doesn’t think that will be enough.
Speaking on the TalkSPORT Gameday Podcast, Lewis felt that the club need to be looking for the next player that will take on that role that Vardy performed for them over the past few seasons:
“I think they need another 20-goal-a-season man. I think they need to be in for maybe a Danny Ings, who still hasn’t signed a new contract at Southampton. Could he be the guy?
“Or could they be going further afield for someone who could come in and give them 15-20 goals a season? But I think they need a long-term replacement for Jamie Vardy, someone who has the ability to get in behind and somebody who has the ability to be the difference in tight games.”
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TIF Thoughts on Darren Lewis calling on Leicester City to find Jamie Vardy’s successor…
Lewis is right to urge some level of caution with how the club deal with replacing Vardy, because his importance to the team cannot be understated. Having scored double digits in the league for them in the past six seasons, not since Riyad Mahrez in 2017/18 has he had someone go and do the same. And whilst there are players who can chip in with the odd few here and there, as they have this season, if Vardy’s form were to drop off or stay injured for a long time, then they will certainly be in a little bit of trouble.
Ings is certainly a name that they should be looking at. Having scored 22 goals in the league last season and on course to break the double-digit mark once again this campaign with seven already to his name, he’s arguably the perfect man to take some of the goalscoring responsibility off of Vardy, which in turn could help prolong his career if he’s able to be rested every now and again.
And whilst it’s not something that has to be addressed this window, it is certainly as issue that you feel has to take priority for them in the summer, with the prospect of Europe potentially enough to attract a big-name player.