Leicester have struggled in the first half of the season and currently sit in 19th, leaving van Nistelrooy with plenty of work to do in the window.The manager’s top priority is improving a defence that has conceded 42 goals and Leicester have several defensive targets on their radar.
One of those is Ben Godfrey, who is set to leave Atalanta this month, while Leicester also want Valentin Gomez among many other defenders.
While signing reinforcements at the back is crucial to their survival bid, the Foxes could land a midfielder who Enzo Maresca captured in the Championship.
Leicester City join race to sign Chelsea midfielder Cesare Casadei
Leicester utilised the loan market when Maresca was in charge, signing four players on temporary deals in their quest for the second-tier title.
The most successful of those captures was Abdul Fatawu, who arrived from Sporting Lisbon on loan before making his move permanent in the summer.
Another player Maresca captured was midfielder Cesare Casadei. The Italian arrived from Chelsea on a season-long loan however, he was surprisingly recalled midway through the campaign by Mauricio Pochettino.
From being an important squad player at the King Power with 22 appearances under his belt, Casadei only played 71 minutes for the Blues from January onwards.
Now, under new Chelsea manager Maresca, the 21-year-old has predominantly featured in the Europa Conference League, starting three times.
According to the Daily Mail, though, Casadei has been attracting enquiries from multiple clubs, most notably Leicester, Torino, Monza and Lazio.
Indeed, van Nistelrooy could bolster his midfield ranks by landing a surprise return for Casadei, who failed to light up the Championship last term.
What Enzo Maresca has said about Cesare Casadei
Having initially brought him to Leicester in 2023, Maresca is a huge fan of Casadei and he’s continued to praise the youngster while at Chelsea.
Although the young midfielder has only featured sporadically in the Conference League and Carabao Cup, the Italian has still waxed lyrical over his attributes.
Interestingly, Maresca has used him as more of a holding midfielder, utilising his physical attributes, whereas at Leicester Casadei was deployed as an advanced playmaker.
Speaking after Chelsea’s 5-0 win over Barrow in September, the Blues manager said: “Cesare played very good against Barrow and even better tonight. I am very happy with the way he is playing. I had Cesare last year and he was playing a little bit in different position.
“This year, we are using him like a holding midfielder. The reason why is because I think we go in the direction where the middle you need physical players.
“Cesare is very big, physically strong and helps us when we want to press. On the ball, he is improving a lot. Tonight he played one touch, so we are very happy. For him, it’s the same as the rest; many things he can do better but he is in the right direction.”
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