Jamie Vardy to leave Leicester at end of season after 13-year spell
Jamie Vardy will leave Leicester City at the end of the season, the club confirmed on Thursday, bringing an end to one of English football’s most remarkable stories.
The 38-year-old striker, who joined the Foxes in 2012 from non-league Fleetwood Town for £1 million, scored 198 goals in nearly 500 appearances. A club icon, Vardy was a key figure in Leicester’s historic 2015/16 Premier League title win and their 2021 FA Cup triumph.
“We can confirm legendary striker Jamie Vardy will leave Leicester City this summer after 13 seasons that have seen him become our greatest-ever player,” the club said in a statement.
Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha called Vardy “unique” and “a special player and an even more special person.”
Vardy, Leicester’s record Premier League goalscorer with 143 goals, admitted the farewell was painful. “To the fans of Leicester, I’m gutted that this day is coming, but I knew it was going to come eventually,” he said in a video message. “I’ve spent 13 unbelievable years at this club, with lots of success, and some downs, but the majority have all been highs.”
Vardy scored 24 goals in Leicester’s title-winning season, including in a record 11 consecutive Premier League games. He was also part of the team that reached the Champions League quarter-finals in 2017.
“This isn’t retirement,” he added. “I want to keep playing and doing what I enjoy most, scoring goals.”
Manager Ruud van Nistelrooy said he had a “great conversation” with Vardy, calling the striker’s loyalty and love for Leicester “impressive like his career.”
(Source: AFP)
