How Leicester City have reacted to Arsenal's £5m Jeremy Monga bid | OneFootball

The 16-year-old has been heavily linked with the Premier League champions

Leicester City are gearing up for just their second-ever season at League One level after back-to-back relegations from the Premier League and Championship, and a major squad reshuffle is on the cards at the King Power Stadium as a result.

The Foxes' recent woes have been well-documented, and their drop into the third tier comes just 10 years after they were crowned Premier League champions at odds of 5000-1.

However, supporters in this part of the East Midlands have seen plenty of misery in the past three years, with a Championship title win under Enzo Maresca in 2023/24 somewhat papering over the cracks in the boardroom under ownership group, King Power.

Indeed, Leicester were relegated from the Championship despite boasting what was ESTIMATED to have been the division's highest wage bill.

Marti Cifuentes was then unable to build on an encouraging start to his tenure at the King Power Stadium and was duly relieved of his duties in January, before being replaced by former Foxes defender and vastly-experienced head coach, Gary Rowett.

However, he was only able to win two of his 14 matches in charge after being appointed on a short-term basis just days after Leicester were hit by a six-point deduction for breaching the EFL's PSR regulations.

Russell Martin has since been confirmed as the club's latest head coach on a three-year deal, although it remains to be seen which current squad members will be at his disposal after an initial 10 were released last month.

However, one who isn't expected to stick around is the highly-rated Jeremy Monga, although the Foxes are clearly standing firm against interest from Premier League champions, Arsenal.

How Leicester City have responded to Arsenal's latest Jeremy Monga bid

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Indeed, Monga's rapid rise onto the first-team scene at the King Power has been well-documented in itself, as he became the club's youngest-ever senior player during a 3-0 loss to Newcastle United in April 2025 under Ruud Van Nistelrooy after previously impressing at academy level.

The Coventry-born winger went on to play a further six times in the top-flight, and has since gone on to play in over half of Leicester's league matches in their second successive relegation campaign, albeit only eight of those came from the starting lineup, and he only started one of City's final 13 games of the season on the final day against Blackburn Rovers.

However, Monga did become the division's youngest-ever goalscorer last August with a smart strike in a 2-1 loss to Preston North End at Deepdale, and before he is even eligible to sign professional terms with Leicester, could be on the move.

The attacker has been heavily linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium, as well as London rivals, Brentford, before it was recently claimed by the Athletic that club-to-club contact had been made ahead of any formal bid, with Monga holding out on a transfer to Mikel Arteta's side.

However, the North London club will have to go again in their pursuit, with Gary Jacob of the Times now reporting via X that a formal bid worth around £5m, plus add-ons, has been turned down.

Arsenal fans left frustrated by Leicester City's firm Jeremy Monga stance

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Despite his high potential, it would take an extraordinary set of circumstances for Monga to be immediately thrust into the limelight at the Emirates Stadium.

However, Arteta has showcased that he is a big believer in talent regardless of age, with the duo of Max Dowman and Ethan Nwaneri making their Premier League debuts at an even younger age than the Leicester prodigy.

The Times' aforementioned report, though, has claimed that the Foxes have dropped their valuation to around £10m, but are wanting to insert a 15% sell-on clause into the deal.

Another Gunners fan has urged the club to change their transfer strategy amid links to Monga.

Meanwhile, one supporter clearly believes that such links could impact Monga's own headspace.

Further eyebrows were then raised by another Gunner, who labelled Monga as nothing more than an 'academy player'.