Leicester Boss Brendan Rodgers Expects Demarai Gray To Remain At The Club

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Leicester Boss Brendan Rodgers Expects Demarai Gray To Remain At The Club

The 24-year-old’s future has been a subject of debate in recent weeks. Gray is in the final year of his contract at the King Power Stadium and has yet to be included in a matchday squad for a Premier League game.

Leeds were linked with a move for the winger, but any potential deal there looks to be off with the Yorkshire club reportedly set to sign Raphinha from Rennes.

Speaking about Gray after Sunday’s 3-0 home defeat to West Ham, Rodgers said: “He’s just outside of the squad. He’s training and we haven’t had any interest in Demarai.

“He’s working hard to get back into the squad again. The squad has started the season well, so that’s been difficult for him.

“So he’s very much in the squad and unless something changes on Monday he’ll continue with his work here at Leicester.”

The transfer window for Premier League clubs closes on Monday night and Rodgers does not expect to be adding to the three signings he has already made.

“I don’t think so, no. We’d like to have brought in a couple of more players, but the availability of the players we want and the affordability is not there at this moment,” said Rodgers, who has brought Timothy Castagne, Cengiz Under and Wesley Fofana to the club this summer.

Meanwhile, West Ham’s search for defensive reinforcements is likely to see them turn to the Championship.

Despite Sunday’s impressive defensive display against Leicester, assistant manager Alan Irvine admitted the Hammers are still short of numbers at the back.

Premier League clubs will be able to buy from the league below up until October 16 and the PA News agency understands that Watford centre-half Craig Dawson is a target for the Hammers.

“When you sit down as we do every day and plan training, looking at the squad, you think we need more defenders, and we certainly do,” said Irvine, who oversaw the team again against Leicester in the continued absence of manager David Moyes, who is self-isolating after testing positive for Covid-19.

“As you’ve seen the players we have available right now are more than capable of doing the job, I just think the big issue is more the fact that we were light in terms of numbers and competition.

“It is not a fact that we don’t have good defenders, it is more a case of if we lost a defender over the course of the season through injury or suspension then we are light.”