James Justin has departed Leicester City to join Premier League side Leeds United after more than six years with the Foxes.
Following their drop from the Premier League, Leicester have experienced a significant player exodus, with eight individuals having moved on so far.
Club mainstays such as Jamie Vardy, Danny Ward, and Wilfried Ndidi have sought new opportunities, while promising youngsters like Mads Hermansen and Kasey McAteer have also left the club for substantial transfer fees.
Among those exits is full-back James Justin, who has earned an immediate return to the Premier League with a £10 million transfer to Leeds United.
Justin, 27, joined the Foxes in the summer of 2019 from Luton Town for a fee of around £8 million after shining for the Hatters in League One, providing competition for Ben Chilwell at left-back and Ricardo Pereira at right-back.
Over his six years with the club, Justin made 169 appearances, scoring 11 goals and contributing ten assists across all competitions, earning an England cap and establishing himself as a Premier League-caliber player.
Lee Hendrie provides his verdict on Leicester City’s loss of James Justin:
Speaking exclusively to Football League World about Leicester’s sale of Justin, Sky pundit Lee Hendrie has shared his perspective on whether the Foxes will miss his experience and savvy.
“He’s a really good signing for Leeds, a really solid addition to them and Leicester will miss him for sure,” said Hendrie.
“I just think with his experience alone, when you lose key players at this stage of the season, you just do wonder how Leicester are going to go this season, particularly when some real big players are going out of the door, and James Justin being one of them.
“I think this will be a real big loss for Leicester, I really do. I know that they do have a few good young players that can certainly come in, but the experience alone of Championship football is important.
“I think this will be a good signing for Leeds and a real disappointment [for Leicester] that they’ve lost a real big key member to their squad.”
James Justin’s exit leaves a glaring hole in the Leicester City defence:
Leicester have begun life under new manager Marti Cifuentes unevenly.
Having struggled to a 2-1 home victory over struggling Sheffield Wednesday in their opening match, the Foxes were eliminated from the League Cup by Huddersfield Town and fell away to Preston North End, but secured a 1-0 win against newly-promoted Charlton Athletic in their latest match.
Justin started at right-back in games against Wednesday and Preston but was omitted from the squad for their triumph over Charlton, with midfielder Hamza Choudhury filling in at right-back.
Following Justin’s departure, this leaves 31-year-old Ricardo Pereira as the club’s sole right-back. Pereira has battled recurring injuries throughout his Leicester tenure, having surpassed 30 league appearances only twice since joining in the summer of 2018.
With just days remaining in the transfer window and 38-year-old backup goalkeeper Asmir Begovic as the club’s only acquisition, the Leicester squad appears diminished, and the loss of the seasoned Justin further weakens their position.