Leicester City set to sign Cesare Casadei on loan from Chelsea

Leicester City have agreed a deal to sign Chelsea attacking midfielder Cesare Casadei on a season-long loan, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The 20-year-old has joined the Foxes as they reinforce their squad for the new season.

The youngster had interest from Genoa and Brighton & Hove Albion but has now moved to the Championship to continue his development. 

Casadei went on loan to Reading in the second half of last season, but his performances were not enough to keep them in the second tier.

He initially struggled to get to grips with Championship football but eventually started to look the part. Casadei played 15 matches and scored once.

However, he hit the headlines this summer, captaining Italy as they reached the final of the Under-20 World Cup. 

Casadei finished the tournament as the top scorer with seven goals and won the Golden Ball for the best player.

He returned to Chelsea, where he got his opportunity to impress new manager Mauricio Pochettino.

The Ravenna-born midfielder did well but needs one or two loan spells to hone his talents and continue his development. 

The Blues have chosen to send him to Leicester, where he will be under the guidance of Enzo Maresca.

Leicester have lost playmaker James Maddison and need someone to provide a spark in midfield. They have turned to the young Chelsea midfielder.

The Blues signed Casadei last summer from Inter Milan for around £12 million despite never making a senior appearance for the Nerazzurri. 

Chelsea’s new owners, Todd Boehly and the Clearlake Capital Consortium, have spent enormous sums on youngsters such as Lesley Ugochukwu, Andrey Santos, Kendry Paez, Angelo Gabriel and Casadei. 

They hope they can be nurtured into world-class stars in the future. But they also need to handle them delicately as their development depends on opportunities they get at this level. 

Chelsea have sent Casadei to the Championship, hoping he’ll take the league by storm and begin to deliver on the enormous promise he showed at the U20 World Cup. 

He will become Leicester’s sixth summer signing after Harry Winks, Conor Coady, Stephy Mavididi, Mads Hermansen and Callum Doyle.