Louis Page: Man United’s pursuit of Leicester City wonderkid sparks strong response from Russell Martin | OneFootball

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Manchester United’s pursuit of Louis Page has sparked a strong response from Leicester City manager Russell Martin as interest in the 18-year-old wonderkid grows.

United leading the charge

Page has emerged as one of the hottest prospects in England this summer after an impressive breakthrough campaign at the King Power Stadium.

Despite Leicester City suffering the ignominy of back-to-back relegations, the midfielder emerged as a rare bright spot for the Foxes, playing 18 times in the Championship and notching one assist.

The England Under-20 international impressed enough to even scoop up the Apprentice of the Year award in the Championship, despite his side finishing in the bottom three.

These performances have put a number of the country’s top clubs – including Manchester United – on red alert over a summer swoop, especially as Leicester’s relegation to League One has left the Midlands side vulnerable.

Having already lost Jeremy Monga – a highly rated 16-year-old winger – to Manchester City, the Red Devils are hoping to repeat their neighbour’s trick by agreeing a deal for Page.

Arsenal and Aston Villa are also in the race, though the Lutterworth native is said to favour a switch to Old Trafford. Leicester are understood to be holding out for a fee as high as £10 million – even if their manager is adamant he does not want to lose the youngster.

Commenting for the first time since reports emerged of interest from England’s elite in Page, Martin – who took charge of Leicester City in June – made his stance on a potential exit clear.

Martin confirmed Page will remain part of his plans until told otherwise, stating, “he’s in the squad. Louis’s a really fantastic young player.”

Interestingly, Martin was previously manager at Southampton when Manchester United’s sporting director, Jason Wilcox, held the same position at St Mary’s, leading the 40-year-old tactician to quip:

“I obviously know their director of football at Manchester United very well after spending some time with him at Southampton. We haven’t actually spoke on Louis because he probably knows what I’d say to him and tell him to go away!

“It’s the same situation as Harry [Souttar], until something comes in that is really brilliant for the club and player and everyone is happy, then Louis stays and he’s in the squad.”

Final Thoughts

While Martin’s comments were somewhat tongue-in-cheek, the salient point is his admission that provided a “really brilliant” offer arrives for Page’s services, the youngster will be allowed to leave.

With Manchester United leading the race ahead of their rivals as Page wants Old Trafford over the Emirates or Villa Park, it will simply be a case of getting the green light from Leicester City now.