The arrival of Wout Faes at King Power Stadium in late 2022 felt less like a strategic acquisition and more like a panicked, eleventh-hour punt.
It was a desperate attempt to appease a restless fanbase. A superficial balm applied to a gaping top flight wound they didn’t yet realise was fatal.
Hindsight only sharpened the sting of unsatisfactory recruitment. The Belgian’s signing was a dreadfully ill-advised precursor to the ‘Nightmare on Filbert Street’ that has haunted Leicester City ever since.
Abject
Faes’ tenure in the East Midlands can only be described as abject. Despite his status as a decorated international, he performed with a staggering incongruity: oscillating between erratic displays of Sunday league clumsiness and a chilling aura of disinterested lethargy.
At times, watching the mop-haired defender was an exercise in frustration: a so-called elite athlete whose heart appeared to have checked out long before his legs did. His lack of conviction suggested a man whose soul had been drained; not just of affection for the Foxes, but for the beautiful game itself.
The Great Escape: Why Wout Faes’ Mediterranean yearning is a mercy for Leicester City
Now,with Faes making no secret of his desire to turn a temporary stint at AS Monaco into a permanent Principality residence, the Leicester faithful are breathing a collective sigh of relief. Or rejoicing.
The financial reality is as sobering as a new Dominik Szoboszlai hairstyle. The East Midlanders will almost certainly fail to recoup the £15 million plus fee paid to Reims almost four years ago.
Though, halving that loss would represent a masterstroke compared to the alternative: remaining shackled to an overpaid, underperforming asset whose commitment has been fundamentally compromised.
Faes recently admitted that while leaving was ‘difficult’, it was a mutual yearning shared by both player and organisation.
As Faes seeks solace on the sun-drenched shores of the Mediterranean, a compromised ending should materialise. For Leicester, it is an exorcism; for the cente back, a fresh start he needs. Good luck.