Leicester earns Premier League promotion as financial issues loom
Leicester City has officially earned promotion back to the Premier League after one season in the second-tier Championship. Despite shocking the sporting world by winning the Premier League title in 2016 and playing nine consecutive seasons in the division, the Foxes were relegated from the English top flight after the 2022/23 campaign.
Nevertheless, Leicester will now be back in the Premier League for the 2024/25 campaign. The East Midlands club, however, did not secure a move up with a big victory. Instead, the Foxes benefited from Queens Park Rangers handing Leeds United a 4-0 beating on Friday. The result means that Leicester holds a four-point lead over the Whites, with Jesse Marsch’s old club having just one match remaining on the schedule.
While the Foxes have earned automatic promotion, the Championship title race is now yet over. Third-placed Ipswich Town is currently five points behind Leicester, but have three games on their fixture list. Leicester can secure the title with a win against Preston on Monday, along with Hull City getting a positive result at home to Ipswich. The top two Championship teams in the table are automatically promoted, while a third team must advance through the playoffs.
Club execs were forced to revamp squad ahead of current season
Leicester will now head back to the Premier League with essentially a new era of players. Club brass basically made wholesale changes to the squad last summer. Stars such as James Maddison, Harvey Barnes, and Timothy Castagne were all sold ahead of the current campaign. Youri Tielemans, Ayoze Perez, Caglar Soyuncu, Jonny Evans, and Daniel Amartey also departed on free transfers as well.
Despite losing all of these key players, the Foxes were able to triumph under new manager Enzo Maresca. The Italian coach got the club off to a flying start by winning 13 of their first 14 league matchups. This included a string of nine consecutive victories, a club record in the division. Maresca previously spent time under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
While Leicester may have experienced a major revamp of their roster, Jamie Vardy remains a key figure at the club. The 37-year-old striker netted 16 Championship goals to lead the team on the season. Club brass will, however, have to extend the veteran’s contract if he is to join the Foxes in the Premier League. Vardy’s current deal will expire in June.
Foxes found guilty of breaking spending rules
Earning promotion back to the Premier League is obviously fantastic news for the club. Nevertheless, there are some serious financial issues looming in Leicester at the moment. The Premier League recently charged the Foxes with breaching profitability and sustainability rules (PSR). As a result, the English Football League (EFL) issued a transfer embargo to the team.
It remains to be seen how Premier League officials will handle the situation given that Leicester will return to the top flight.
Team brass also recently revealed new financial losses as well, which could further complicate the matter.
Along with these issues, the club could face a points deduction before they even play another Premier League match. Despite the ongoing headaches, Leicester will certainly take a break from the stress to celebrate their success in the Championship.
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