Demarai Gray has been told by Leicester City that he will not be offered a new deal in the summer when his current contract ends and Saints are being touted as the favourits to land his signature.

Saints are reportedly interested in signing Leicester winger Demarai Gray on a free transfer this summer.

The 24-year-old, who was part of Leicester's title winning squad in the 2015-16 season, is out of contract at the end of June and has been told by the club he will not be getting a renewal.

He is free to speak to clubs from abroad now, but the reality is that his agent will also be sounding out Premier League clubs about his availability'

Gray joined Leicester in January 2016 just in time to help them win the Premier League title that season, although all but 1 of his 12 appearances were off the bench, that was the case for most of his games in his first couple of years, but in 2018/19 he seemed to make a breakthrough starting 23 and coming on in another 11 games.

But last season he started only 3 games and this season has managed just one appearance, that off the bench for 18 minutes.

The media are reporting that Saints are looking to take him on a free transfer in the summer, but Leicester may be interested in a loan deal now with a permanent move in the summer and that could be the way that Saints might prefer to go.

Photo: Action Images

ElijahK added 21:14 - Jan 3 I mean a new signing can’t hurt but I mean why we’re going for wingers when that’s LITERALLY the least needed position does worry and confuse me seeing that we need a strikers/fullbacks/centre backs more.
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pjt50 added 22:48 - Jan 3 Maybe taking him on loan in Jan. would mean that we keep either him or Theo – or neither – for next season. He certainly seems more like our normal purchase.
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sandywelsh added 23:10 - Jan 3 I think he would be a good signing for Saints. Ralph could make him into a better player than either Djenepo or Redmond!
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NewburySaint added 10:46 - Jan 4 Would rather we sign Walcott permanently in the summer if he continues his form since he came back.
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TimSaint added 11:52 - Jan 4 Mr Bad Attitude apparently - according to many Leicester fans anyway. If we can pick him up cheaply, then why not ? If anyone can get something out of a player, then it will probably be RH - although he still has a number of Work in Progress players in our current squad !! ;-) I feel he could improve us on the wings because..... Redmond has flattered to deceive, is inconsistent, doesn't score enough and is now beginning to struggle with injury. Djenepo has not pushed on from his performances of last season and has hardly challenged Redmond (when fit) for that LM slot. Doesn't link up with Bert and always seems to pick the wrong option. Armstrong has been good, slowly improving and adding more goals to his game, but has not been the same player since his bout of covid. Theo has been great and has been a good example for the rest of the squad. I would like to see him stay - especially if he could control it a bit better and score a bit more often - but very much doubt we could afford him and age is not on his side. Therefore Gray seems a viable and affordable option and will provide further competition for places. Perhaps as others have suggested, a 6 month loan with an option to buy (unlike the Alderweireld one) would be the best option ?

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underweststand added 15:45 - Jan 4 This storyline has been around for a while, but I think it is a good move to take him on loan with a view to him being on a free in the summer. Gray was Redmond's replacement at Birmingham after Nathan moved to Norwich and did OK there - hence the move to Leicester. The fact that he doesn't feature at Leicester is purely down to Rodgers who has other preferences. I think a half-season with Ralph will show if he is " our sort of player " . I agree with Tim Saint (above) that we are all in love with the " Nathan Redmond - that was ", but he hasn't looked a patch on his former-self of late, and is still out injured with no fixed return date in sight. If we are to make a go of the rest of the year we need good cover EVERYWHERE , because " a bad January " will anchor us in the bottom half for the rest of the season. Get him on board - for 6 months at least - surely it's a win-win deal.

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