January 2016 will represent something of a crossroads for Leicester City, who currently sit atop the Premier League (yes, it’s still incredibly fun and surreal to type that) after 15 rounds of games.
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As NBC Sports broadcasters Rebecca Lowe, Kyle Martino and Robbie Mustoe discuss in the above video, manager Claudio Ranieri and the executive board at the King Power Stadium will have to decide on the following: should we cash in on players whose value might never be higher in an effort to consolidate and solidify our place as a Premier League club and little more, or stand pat with who we’ve got and ride this thing out because, hey, what if we actually win this thing?
Chief among the players currently on Leicester’s books likely to garner the most interest are, of course, forwards Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez. Sure, Leicester could unload one, or both, of their leading goalscorers (14 and 10 league goals scored this season, respectively) and make sure they’re around in the PL for the next five years and reap the benefits of another gigantic wave of television revenue.
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Or, they could hold onto the dynamic duo that has them to the top of the table in early December, and add a bit of something come January, offsetting what will surely be a cooling-off period for one or both players at some point, in an attempt to solidify themselves as a top-half or top-six or -seven side.
For a few million spent in January — on the right players, right fit, etc., of course — could Leicester improve their squad enough to actually compete for European qualification, whether the Champions League or Europa League? Do they even want that?