Sousa: Departures possible

Leicester City manager Paulo Sousa has admitted that some of his first team players have asked to leave the club.

Sousa refused to name exactly who had expressed the desire to quit the club ahead of the transfer window closing tomorrow, but revealed that departures could be possible.

“Yes, we have some of them (who have asked to go) but not too many,” he said.

“It means we have some good players and other clubs are interested in them. Depending on offers and the minds of the players, we will make decisions but we will keep it in-house.

“Players get unsettled when their agents start to tell them about other possibilities.

“Also, when there is a new manager, and they have been first choice for another manager with a different kind of football, everyone starts in a little bit of doubt.”

The Foxes crashed to another defeat at the weekend with a 2-1 loss to Reading, leaving them rooted to the bottom of the table with four matches played.

With an international break coming this weekend, Sousa has an extra week to work with his side as they bid to stop their early season rot.

New arrivals should be in place before the end of tomorrow’s window according to the City manager, including Japanese midfielder Yuki Abe.

“I am close with some deals,” Sousa said. “We keep working very hard and hopefully by today we will settle on some extra players.

“We have two or three positions we are looking for in different sectors, with different characteristics. Hopefully we can achieve them.”