Doncaster Rovers lining up loan swoop for Leicester City centre-back | OneFootball

Leicester City youngster Ben Nelson is on the radar of Doncaster Rovers this month, Alan Nixon has reported on his Patreon account.

The South Yorkshire outfit are looking to strengthen their squad for a potential tilt at the League Two play-offs in the second half of the season, with Danny Schofield’s side sitting just three points outside of the top seven.

And Nelson has been identified as someone who could potentially bolster Schofield’s defensive options at the Keepmoat Stadium

The 18-year-old, who has been capped by England at two different youth levels having made his debut for both the under-18’s and under-19’s teams in 2022, spent the first half of the 2022-23 campaign on loan at Doncaster’s league rivals Rochdale.

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The teenager played 10 times for the Dale in the fourth tier of English football, but he was recalled by the Foxes earlier in the month due to a lack of game-time, having started just twice since the end of September in the league.

Nelson could now be on the move once again though but to a team higher in the standings, with Rovers keen on his signature.

The Verdict

Having played for England at two youth levels last year, it’s clear that Nelson is highly-rated and has a ton of potential, and his stint at Rochdale will have been a steep learning curve.

Dale are not very good this season and perhaps manager Jim Bentley preferred his more experienced options instead, but that does not mean that Nelson can not flourish elsewhere.

Kyle Knoyle had been playing on the right-hand side of a back three before his departure to Stockport County, and now that he has departed it has left a vacancy in Schofield’s defence.

You’d imagine that Nelson would get plenty of playing time at Doncaster despite his experience at Rochdale where he was on the bench a lot, but ultimately Leicester will either be sending him to the place where he would fit the best or keeping him at the club to play for the under-21’s.