Leicester City lauded for Leeds United transfer - it was 'one of the biggest bargains in English football' | OneFootball

Kasper Schmeichel became a legendary figure for Leicester City after joining the Foxes for a bargain fee.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Leicester City are enduring yet another season back in the Championship after the highs of being at the start of a Premier League title-winning campaign a decade ago.

The Foxes will be hoping some of this squad can become fan favourites as they search for an immediate return back to the top-flight, but there is little hope of any player ever reaching the status of the players and that squad that went before.

Chock full of bargain deals, one signing that is perhaps less discussed and can almost be described as ‘unsung’ would be the arrival of Kasper Schmeichel.

Kasper Schmeichel became a Leicester legend

Football - Leeds United v Lincoln City - Carling Cup First Round - Elland Road - 10/11 - 10/8/10 Kasper Schmeichel - Leeds United Mandatory Credit: Action Images / Lee Smith

In the summer of 2011, Leicester City brought in goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel for a fee of £1 million from Leeds United.

Schmeichel had been a loanee journeyman having come through at Manchester City, playing on a temporary basis for Darlington, Bury, Falkirk, Cardiff City and Coventry City before permanent moves to Notts County and then Leeds.

It was a risk of a signing to an extent but the low fee was more than repaid and FLW Leicester Fan Pundit Louchlainn Martin has heaped the praise on the deal, the club and the player.

Louchlainn says: “Kasper Schmeichel is one of the best bargains, I think, in Leicester City history, although we have had a few with (Jamie) Vardy for a million, (Riyad) Mahrez for £500,000, (N’Golo) Kante for a few million.

“He wasn’t the biggest bargain but he absolutely was and is one of the biggest bargains in English football history really.

“He struggled to find a home for quite a long time. At Man City, he was loaned out quite a lot and I think he was at Leeds United, and he was OK there but Leicester took the gamble on him.

“Leicester went through a phase of hiring names and they signed a few players who had played in the Premier League and they obviously brought in Sven-Goran Eriksson, who was another name.

“Schmeichel was another name but I don’t think people realised what he would go on to do.

“He played so many games, one of the highest appearance makers of all time at Leicester. He won the FA Cup and the Premier League, won the Charity Shield, won the Championship, played in Europe three or four times for us.

“I think he did everything you would expect from a ‘keeper of his level. He wasn’t elite. He wasn’t the best goalkeeper in the league but he was one of the best and consistently, and for £1 million, Leicester did extremely well.”

Leicester lost their magic touch in the transfer window

Throughout the early-to-mid-2010’s, Leicester, with Nigel Pearson at the helm, unearthed some gems for very low fees and they transformed themselves and the club into an other worldly and unexpected status.

It wasn’t necessarily a clear recruitment plan with a lot of mixed additions, from the second division in France to non-league in England, but whatever it was that saw City often take gambles on unheard of talents has certainly been lost as the riches of the Premier League grew.

Jamie Vardy became the last of the 2015/16 title-winning squad to leave over the summer, with the former England international having joined Cremonese on a free transfer.

The Foxes have some very talented players and a good coach in Marti Cifuentes but it is reasonable to suggest that none of their players now were necessarily ‘bargain’ deals.

Kasper Schmeichel was a bargain that saw Leicester bring in a player who would play close to 500 times for the club, winning two major trophies and playing in the UEFA Champions League over an 11-year stint.

Whatever that magic touch was that the Foxes found during that period has been lost, even if they still have a squad that should be challenging for promotion once again this season.