Patson Daka is currently entering the final months of the five-year contract he signed at the King Power Stadium, and his departure appears to be a foregone conclusion. When the Zambian striker arrived from the Austrian side RB Salzburg in 2021, there was a sense of significant excitement, but it is now widely considered that his stint with the Foxes has been a total disaster. He hasn’t managed to find the net more than 11 times in a single season since his inaugural 21/22 campaign in England, and his current form is even more concerning, with the 27-year-old recording a mere three league goals in 34 appearances this term.
After a particularly poor showing in the club’s recent Championship fixture against Watford—where Daka missed both a penalty and a glaring open-goal opportunity—it seems many Leicester supporters are now simply waiting for his exit. The frustration has shifted toward the financial cost of his tenure. When looking at the numbers, the Foxes originally paid a transfer fee of roughly £23 million to Salzburg according to Sky Sports. Given that he has only scored 27 total goals in a Leicester jersey, each goal has effectively cost the club over £850,000.
Regardless of whether Leicester faces another relegation or manages to stay up, news of Daka’s expected departure will likely be received positively by the fanbase. Reports from journalist John Percy indicate that the striker is set to leave once his contract expires this June, and the club is already planning a major overhaul by looking to sign two new strikers to fill the void he leaves behind. Adding fuel to the fire, reports from the Turkish outlet Aspor suggest that Daka has already offered his services to Galatasaray, potentially as a replacement for their star man, Mauro Icardi.
Financially, Daka’s exit will also clear a significant amount from the wage bill. Capology estimates that the forward has been earning £75,000 per week during his entire stay at Leicester, a figure that remained high even as the club dropped into the second tier. Interim manager Gary Rowett has done little to hide his own disappointment in the player’s recent performances. Following the Watford match, Rowett was vocal about the missed chances, stating that a penalty must be converted and criticizing Daka for failing to get a “diving header on target” with the goal at his mercy.
For his part, Daka has tried to remain professional amidst the mounting rumors, telling BolaNews that he ignores the noise and focuses only on his current role at Leicester. However, with John Percy’s reporting and the club’s need for a massive summer rebuild, his exit seems certain. For a player who was once a top priority for former manager Brendan Rodgers, his poor return on investment is a glaring reason why the club is unlikely to offer him a new deal, marking a quiet and disappointing end to his career in the East Midlands.
