"Massive blow" - Pundit reacts to Abdul Fatawu news after Leicester City charge | OneFootball

Following the news of Leicester City being charged by the Premier League for allegedly breaking financial regulations, it could have huge implications on any potential summer business.

The Sun reported that the Foxes were already considering selling players in the summer in an attempt to avoid a financial fair play (FFP) charge, but now they have been charged, the club will surely have to.

The bad news for Leicester City supporters is that this could potentially mean that they're unable to sign star player Abdul Fatawu on a permanent basis, after impressing on loan from Sporting Lisbon this season.

The winger had a release clause of €60million when he first joined the Portuguese outfit, but a deal was agreed that if he played 60% of Leicester's games this season, and the club won promotion, the Foxes could sign him for just €17million.

This would have been a bargain deal for the 20-year-old, but it remains to be seen if they'll still be able to bring him to the club on a permanent basis after the news that they have been charged.

It's since been revealed that Fatawu’s future at Leicester City could be in doubt due to the club’s transfer embargo.

As per Portuguese outlet A Bola, the most likely scenario this summer is a return to Sporting Clube de Portugal.

Carlton Palmer on Leicester City's chances of signing Abdul Fatawu on a permanent basis

Former England midfielder and current pundit Carlton Palmer believes that it would be a huge blow for Leicester if they were unable to bring the Ghana international to the King Power on a permanent deal.

Speaking to FLW, Palmer said: "Leicester City have been dealt a massive blow. They were hoping to sign Abdul Fatawu at the end of the season should they get promoted to the Premier League.

“He’s been exceptional for Leicester City after they took him from Sporting Lisbon.

"He had a €60million release clause at Sporting, but the loan deal that was agreed meant that Leicester could sign him for €17million if he played 60% of the games, and the club gained promotion. "Obviously, now with Leicester in difficulties over the FFP issue, they might not be able to sign him on a permanent deal, and it was a fantastic deal they had in place to sign him.

“Leicester City have launched an appeal over the FFP issues, and we’ll have to wait and see what the outcome is."

Despite Leicester's FFP woes, they have also been on a poor run of form, and now find themselves in second-place, although they do have a game in hand over Leeds United.

This means that they're not guaranteed to win promotion yet, and that could also hinder their deal to sign Fatawu.

“He’s 20, and an exceptional talent, and it will be a shame if they can’t get this deal over the line," said Palmer.

“The €17m deal can only be agreed if Leicester are promoted, and now they’re in a dogfight with Ipswich and Leeds for automatic promotion, so we’ll have to see what happens, but this is a massive blow for them."

Abdul Fatawu's form for Leicester City

Abdul Fatawu has played 34 games in all competitions for the Foxes this season, scoring four goals but registering ten assists - putting him sixth in the Championship assist chart.

He has become one of the first names on Enzo Maresca's team sheet, and considering he only turned 20 earlier this month, the Ghana international looks set to become a future star.

According to Sofascore, Fatawu has scored three times from an xG of 2.68, and has registered 10 assists from an expected assist rate of 7.59.

He has a dribble success rate of 54%, has won 53% of all duels, and has created 25 big chances this season.

These stats show that Fatawu is a very good player, and having the option to buy him for a fee of €17million in the summer after promotion would have been a great move for the club.

If they miss out on him, it's inevitable that he will be snapped up by a club elsewhere, and there's no doubt that Leicester will come to rue missing out on him.

It's set to be an interesting summer ahead for the Foxes, but first and foremost, Fatawu will be looking to help the club clinch Premier League promotion.