Leicester City have announced that star striker Jamie Vardy has agreed a new four-year deal with the club and will sign it once he returns from Euro 2016. Just prior to heading to the Euro’s Arsenal had activated a £20million release in his Foxes contract.
The striker is believed to have been prepared to wait until his participation was over to make his decision public, but it seems the club have already done it for him.
The 29-year-old’s meteoric rise from non-league player to Premier League winner is almost more unbelievable that fiction. Last season he won English Player of the Year and scored 24 goals to help the Foxes to an unlikely Premier League title triumph.
The striker agreeing a new deal with the Foxes shows tremendous loyalty on his part to the club and his teammates. The move to Arsenal, a much bigger club than Leicester must have been tempting, especially with the likelihood of an even bigger pay packet available in north London.
However, it seems the striker wants to repay the Foxes for taking a chance on him by plucking him from non-league for a fee of around £1million, which is a record fee for the sale of any player from a non-league club.
Jamie Vardy may be thinking why move if he is happy in the Midlands, one of the stars of his team and set to play Champions League football next season?
If the fact that he feels a loyalty to the club and his teammates has persuaded him to stay at the King Power Stadium, then it would make a refreshing change, as modern footballers are so often mercenaries who are only looking after themselves. Well done Jamie Vardy!