Leicester's 10 biggest sales of all time

Cameron Smith

• 23 Feb 2024 15:28 GMT
• 5 min read

Leicester City have risen to become one of the English football’s most efficient clubs when it comes to selling players, and it has helped them greatly in recent times.

Their relegation to the Championship in 2023 may have underdone some of their hard work in the transfer market, but the Foxes had previously secured European football, and even managed to win the FA Cup back in 2021.

That success came largely thanks to a brilliant recruitment team, who made the right decisions when it came to replacing stars sold for huge profits.

Below, FootballTransfers lists Leicester's 10 biggest sales of all time.

10. Emile Heskey - €16.5m (to Liverpool, 2000)

Emile Heskey started his career with Leicester City and became a prolific forward with the Foxes, which earned a €16.5 million move to Liverpool in 2000.

The Englishman became even more of a household name at Anfield, and was regular within the national team set-up. Heskey netted 60 goals during his four-year stay with the Reds.

9. Ahmed Musa - €16.5m (to Al-Nassr, 2018)

Ahmed Musa joined Leicester after their title-winning campaign, and amidst

Leicester’s struggles that season, he too failed to make an impact in England.

Musa scored just five goals in 33 Leicester appearances and he left just two years after signing.

He was let go in 2018, moving to Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr, as Leicester looked to move in a different direction and find other forwards.

8. N’Golo Kante - €35.8m (to Chelsea, 2016)

The star of Leicester’s title-winning team went for a relatively low fee, but it was still great business from Leicester, who signed N’Golo Kante for a much smaller price just a year prior.

Kante only spent one year at the King Power Stadium, but he was a vital cog in their achievements in 2016 and he helped Chelsea win the Premier League title during his first season at the Blues too.

The Frenchman also won the Champions League during his time at Stamford Bridge, before he left to join Al-Nassr on a free transfer in 2023.

7. Danny Drinkwater - €37.9m (to Chelsea, 2017)

Danny Drinkwater sat beside Kante in the Leicester midfield for their title-winning season and that was by far the best campaign of his campaign.

Things weren’t quite as rosy after that, as his 2017 move to Chelsea didn’t reap the same rewards and he found it hard to make a mark in the team.

Drinkwater was loaned to Burnley, Aston Villa, Kasimpasa and Reading before being released by Chelsea in 2022.

6. Harvey Barnes - €44m (to Newcastle, 2023)

Following Leicester's relegation to the Championship in 2023, their star men were expected to leave and thus Harvey Barnes' exit came as little surprise.

The Englishman had scored 13 Premier League goals in his final campaign at Leicester and his performances over a number of years prompted Newcastle to spend €44m to keep him in the English top flight.

Barnes left Leicester after scoring 45 goals and providing 32 assist in 187 games for his boyhood club.

5. James Maddison - €46.3m (to Tottenham, 2023)

James Maddison was Leicester's other key player to depart in 2023, with Tottenham Hotspur seizing the opportunity to sign the attacking midfielder for a great price of just €46.3m.

Leicester were happy to accept that amount as Maddison was set to enter the final year of his contract and he wasn't keen on staying with the club in the Championship.

The Englishman left the King Power having scored 55 goals in 203 appearances for the Foxes.

4. Ben Chilwell - €50.2m (to Chelsea, 2020)

Chelsea's left-back dilemma saw Frank Lampard target Nicolas Tagliafico and Ben Chilwell before opting to sign the latter for €50.2m in 2020.

The Englishman’s rise at the Foxes was appreciated and he was one of the league’s best by the time he left, with his attacking threat particularly impressive.

Chilwell helped Chelsea win the 2021 Champions League trophy during his first season at Stamford Bridge.

3. Riyad Mahrez - €67.8m (to Man City, 2018)

Riyad Mahrez won the PFA Player of the Year award in the 2015-16 season, as he helped Leicester miraculously win the Premier League title.

Despite heavy rumours of an exit, it wasn't until 2018 that the Algerian earned a big move to Manchester City.

During his time under Pep Guardiola, Mahrez won 12 trophies, including four more Premier League titles and the 2023 Champions League.

He joined Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli just weeks after lifting the UCL for the first time in his career.

2. Wesley Fofana - €80.4m (to Chelsea, 2022)

Chelsea continued their history of signing big-money stars from Leicester when they paid a whopping €80.4m to sign French defender Wesley Fofana in 2022.

The centre-back had been one of the Premier League's best defender during his debut campaign in England, but he suffered an ACL injury in his final season at Leicester, which made this signing a risk.

Fofana then suffered another ACL injury, this time at Chelsea, in 2023. He was one of three French centre-backs the Blues signed for over €35m in Todd Boehly's first three transfer windows as Blues owner (alongside Axel Disasi and Benoit Badiashile).

1. Harry Maguire - €87m (to Man Utd, 2019)

Manchester United were in negotiations with Leicester over the signing of Harry Maguire for a very long time, and they concluded business just before the start of the 2019-20 season.

The Foxes weren't willing to cave to the demands of a bigger club and ended up selling Maguire for the largest fee ever spent on a defender, overtaking Virgil van Dijk’s record.

Maguire was named Man Utd captain by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer shortly after he arrived at Old Trafford, but he was stripped of that title by Erik ten Hag in 2023, with Bruno Fernandes taking over captaincy duties.

The 10 biggest Leicester sales of all time