When Arsenal triggered Jamie Vardy’s £20 million release clause on June 3, it was easy to envision the beginning of the end for the Leicester City fairytale.
They’d just won the Premier League title, something Arsenal haven’t managed for 12 years, and qualified for the 2016-17 Champions League, but surely the uncertainty surrounding Leicester’s ability to do it all again come August could’ve majorly influenced Vardy.
Arsenal are consistently near the top of the table, playing in Europe and are a massive global commercial power. Not to mention the small fact that Arsenal offered Vardy £120,000 per week while Leicester can only offer £100,000. In the end, however, loyalty and footballing pleasure won out.
Would Vardy have been a key performer for Arsenal? Would he have fit with their possession based approach to the game? The general thinking is no, but when Raheem Sterling moved from Liverpool to Manchester City he seemed to think that sacrificing the joy in his game was tantamount to improving as a player.
Fabian Delph, Christian Benteke and Jack Rodwell have followed similar lines of thought in recent times only to see their careers stall. Romelu Lukaku moved in the opposite direction, from Chelsea to Everton, and he flourished this past season.
Jamie Vardy signed a new four-year deal with Leicester City. Photo: @TSBible | Twitter
It’s refreshing to see a player remain loyal to a club that’s stuck with them through the good and the bad. At 29 years of age, Vardy’s improved four-year deal with Leicester means he’ll spend the peak years of his career with the club he’s progressed with from the English Championship to the top of the Premier League.
After scoring 24 Premier League goals for the Foxes last term, Leicester City have moved one step closer to challenging again this season by retaining Vardy.
The club are also keen to secure the services of Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante for the longterm. This is a statement of intent from the King Power Stadium — their fairy tale refuses to face reality.
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