…as Fashion win Man of the match in Saudi debut
By MICHAEL MIYOBA
PATSON Daka’s future at Leicester City remains in doubt after he was left out of the Foxes match day squad for the trip to Huddersfield over the weekend.
The Chipolopolo striker who has been linked with a move to the English Premier League after Leicester’s relegation to the English Championship has not played a single minute of the club’s three competitive games played so far under Enzo Maresca.
Daka has endured a mixed time with the Foxes since joining them from Red Bull Salzburg two seasons ago and was part of the five senior players not included in the squad that defeated Huddersfield 1-0 on Saturday.
Leicester City coach Maresca said: “The players that were not in the squad today, it was because of a technical decision for some of them, and for some of them, I thought it was better for them to stay at home. But that doesn’t mean that in the next game they won’t be involved. It was just for today.”
The Chipolopolo dependable striker who has scored nine goals in the last nine matches for Zambia has struggled to claim the first-choice role at Leicester City which depends more on club legend and captain Jamie Vardy and Nigerian striker Kelechi Iheanacho.
After scoring 15 goals and eight assists in 74 appearances for the Foxes, Daka is reported to have attracted interest from English Premier League outfit Everton who are determined to beef up their striking force.
Everton gaffer Sean Dyche is interested in signing Daka because the forward has the pace he requires according to English media.
Dyche is reportedly hoping to lure Daka away from Leicester for a reasonable price – but the forward still has three years left on his contract and that will strengthen the Foxes’ negotiating position.
Meanwhile, Chipolopolo striker Fashion Sakala Junior contributed a goal and an assist on his debut for the Al-Fahya side that kicked off the Saudi Professional League 2023/2024 campaign with a 3-1 win over Al Khaleej Club at the Al Majmaa Sport City Stadium.
Sakala played the full match and registered his first ever assist for the club after just 13 minutes when he assisted Brazilian midfielder Ricardo Ryller for the opener.
The former Glasgow Rangers striker who completed his big money move to the Saudi League last week got on the score sheet just before halftime to cap an impressive debut in Saudi Arabia.
Sultan Mandash made it 3-0 from the penalty spot in the 76th minute after a foul inside the area before Hisham Al Dubais pulled one back for Al Khaleej three minutes to time.
