2 Championship players that Leicester City should sign for free this summer | OneFootball

Even though nothing is set in stone just yet with over two months of the 2023-24 Championship season to go, it would be a complete shock if Leicester City were not back in the Premier League come May.

The Foxes have been rampant for much of the current campaign, blowing away most sides that they come across - with the odd exceptions - and even though some home supporters have not been fully impressed with head coach Enzo Maresca's style of play, it seems to be doing the job.

Once City's inevitable promotion is confirmed, the recruitment team can look towards adding new players to Maresca's squad, and with the likes of Wilfred Ndidi, Dennis Praet and Kelechi Iheanacho out of contract this summer, there could be some big changes to come.

And when Leicester go up as they are expected to do, they could take some top Championship players with them on free transfers as they potentially look to bargain hunt and cherry pick - let's take a look at TWO second tier individuals that City could target.

Callum O'Hare

It would be very controversial for O'Hare to move across the M69 from Leicester's bitter rivals Coventry City, but it's not an impossible switch to facilitate.

O'Hare has been a revelation for the Sky Blues since signing in 2019, initially on loan from Aston Villa, and his League One performances in their promotion-winning campaign prompted Mark Robins to sign the creative midfielder permanently.

Whilst not a prolific goalscorer over the years, O'Hare is a very good dribbler and creator at Championship level, but the 2022-23 campaign was a real write-off for him as he suffered a hamstring injury which sidelined him for the first few months of the season, and on Boxing Day 2022 he then picked up a serious knee injury that kept him out of action for nearly a year.

The 25-year-old has returned this season with a vengeance though and has already topped his Championship seasonal goal tally in a reduced amount of matches, and he's already been on Leicester's radar.

The Daily Mail's Tom Collomosse reported in January that the Foxes, as well as Burnley, Southampton and unnamed La Liga sides were keeping tabs on O'Hare's situation ahead of the summer, and with Mark Robins admitting that the playmaker is holding out to see if he gets Premier League offers, Leicester could strike in a few months' time.

There is a spot for O'Hare in Maresca's midfield too, with the Italian usually playing two advanced midfielders ahead of the sitting Harry Winks - Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is a lock for one of them but with the future of Ndidi unclear, Coventry's prized asset would be a perfect fit alongside KDH.

Alan Browne

Leicester may need more than one midfield player signed this summer to compensate for potential departures, and a player in the prime of his career that could be good for depth is Preston North End man Browne.

Browne has been a one-club man in professional football, signing for the Lilywhites at the start of 2024 from Cork City and he has developed from a lightweight teenager in League One to a solid Championship midfielder that at times has put PNE on his back and dragged them through games.

Capped 35 times for the Republic of Ireland with five international goals to his name, Browne recently reached the 400 appearance mark for North End in senior football, yet there's a strong chance that the 28-year-old could depart Deepdale this summer.

He is still yet to pen a contract extension that has been on the table since December at the very least, and late on in the mid-season transfer window he was the subject of an approach from Serie A strugglers Salernitana, who failed in their approach at the time but intend to court the Irishman on a potential pre-contract basis.

Whilst Browne may not be an automatic starter in Leicester's side (that doesn't include Ndidi in the middle) he is very energetic, can also play as a wing-back and would complement Dewsbury-Hall quite well as a box-to-box option.

Would Leicester