Southampton have been touted as a potential suitor for Hamza Choudhury, who could be on the way out of Leicester this summer.

What's the talk?

Former Saints midfielder Carlton Palmer has suggested that a deal for the Foxes defensive midfielder could work for the south coast club this summer if the money is right, believing that there could be a deal to be done if Ralph Hasenhuttl believes he fits the style of play.

He told Football FanCast: “It’s a question whether he will fit into the way Southampton play and will he fit into the mould, the way that Ralph Hasenhuttl wants to play – and that’s as simple as it is.

“If that player does, he fits in and comes at the right money, then it works.”

Earlier this year, Brendan Rodgers hailed Choudhury as “terrific”, whilst admitting that Leicester would be willing to sell him if they could sign a replacement.

The manager told Leicester Mercury: “He’s been terrific. I said earlier in the window that he wasn’t a player that we wanted to lose. He’s a very important player for our squad, but of course all players want to play.

“We were going to grant him that possibility if we could get someone in.

“I said to him on the Monday after training and framed it for him: ‘You may not get out, and if you don’t, you’re playing on Wednesday night, and that shows you how important you are to us, you’re going to play in our next Premier League game’."

It's time to go

Rodgers must now ruthlessly axe Choudhury from Leicester's squad this summer. The midfielder has not been able to kick on for the club in recent seasons and the time could now be right for him to move on.

The 23-year-old has never been able to establish himself as a regular starter at the King Power Stadium and he needs to go and play consistently week-in, week-out, which is why this could be the perfect summer for him to depart.

Choudhury has two years left on his contract this summer and Leicester may not get a better opportunity to cash in on him. If they leave it 12 months and then decide that they want to sell him, they may not be able to generate as much money from his sale as he would only have a year left on his deal in 2022. This means that any interested clubs could threaten Leicester with the potential of waiting to sign him on a free transfer, which could lead to the Foxes needing to accept a lower figure for his services.

Therefore, now is the time for Leicester to sell. If Southampton or any other club are keen on him, then Leicester should listen to their offers. Rodgers would, of course, need to replace him with a new midfielder, but Choudhury's impact on the squad last season was minimal.

The £61,000-per-week beast only started nine games across the Premier League and Europa League in 2020/21 for Leicester, which suggests that his potential exit would not be a major blow to Rodgers' squad.

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