As Leicester City soars, it may be possible for marginal players to gain more experience on the field.
While having strong depth is essential in the Championship, especially for a team that is contending for the championship, it is necessary that all players get some playing time to maximize their growth.
The nature of Leicester City’s high-flying form has meant Enzo Maresca has not been handed many reasons to make wholesale changes to his squad every week, even if he is blessed with quality across a range of different positions.
A string of six straight league victories sees the Foxes perch on the top of the table with the relentless Ipswich Town keeping them on their toes, while the remainder of the chasing pack are already falling off the pace.
While confidence is flowing with victories galore, the next challenge for the former Manchester City coach is squad management, ensuring the full range of his squad are kept satisfied both on and off the pitch as we look at three players who could do with a move away from the King Power Stadium, even on a temporary basis.
Wanya Marçal
In what looked to be the Wanya Marçal’s breakthrough campaign, the Portuguese youngster looked lively in the early stages of the season.
An impressive performance in the 2-0 EFL Cup win over Burton Albion was rewarded with back-to-back league starts against Huddersfield Town and Cardiff City, scoring the opener against the Bluebirds.
However, despite making a glowing first impression, the 20-year-old has fallen down the pecking order with Stephy Mavididi and Kasey McAteer shining on either flank and has instead returned to playing for the U21s side.
Daniel Iversen
Both Daniel Iversen and Danny Ward have found themselves out of favour at the King Power Stadium with new signing Mads Hermansen and academy shotstopper Jakub Stolarczyk keeping them both out of the first-team picture.
The Danish international, who has a contract until 2025, attracted interest from Premier League side Crystal Palace in the summer, according to the Daily Mail, but never went through with the move.
Carrying an asking price of £5 million this summer, also reported by the Daily Mail, the Foxes wanted to sell the goalkeeper after rejecting a loan bid from Stoke City but if nobody wants to part with the cash in January, could benefit from sending him out on loan to retain, or even increase, his value.
Harry Souttar
Despite starting his first league game of the season in the 2-0 win over Stoke City, Souttar is ultimately some way down the pecking order.
The Australian international was touted with a move away in the summer as, according to the Daily Record, he was subject to interest from Scottish giants Rangers.
While such a transfer never happened, the 24-year-old has only appeared twice across all competitions. In Maresca’s plans, Jannik Vestergaard, Conor Coady, Wout Faes, and Callum Doyle all rank ahead of him, albeit the latter is out until the New Year.
