Leicester City are set to resist any approaches for Abdul Fatawu this January, mirroring the stance they took during the summer window.
Interest in the winger has been building for some time, with Bournemouth monitoring him even before the window opened as they look to line up a possible replacement for Antoine Semenyo, who has been linked with a move to Manchester City. Fatawu has also been on the radar of other Premier League sides, with Everton showing interest last summer and Sunderland seeing a reported £28 million offer rejected.
Since then, the Ghana international has continued to raise his profile. He has been directly involved in 11 Championship goals this season, scoring several eye catching efforts along the way, and has also put any doubts over his fitness to rest after recovering from the ACL injury he suffered more than a year ago.
Given that form, renewed top flight attention comes as little surprise. Manager Marti Cifuentes insists the club’s approach will remain consistent with how they handled similar interest in the summer.
“There is always a strategy and a plan,” Cifuentes said. “Abdul is a very important player for us and the club showed that clearly in the summer. As far as I know, nothing has changed.”
While Cifuentes stopped short of completely ruling out a sale, he made it clear where Fatawu stands within the squad. “He is a key player for us and the club has a clear way of dealing with these situations,” he added.
Fatawu has started every league match for Leicester this season, contributing four goals and 11 assists. Although his performances have drawn some frustration from supporters at times, his output has remained steady, with his longest spell without a goal or assist lasting just four games.
The 21 year old first arrived at the club on loan two and a half years ago, before Leicester made the move permanent with a £14 million deal from Sporting Lisbon 18 months back.