Leicester City Complete The Capture of Stephy Mavididi

Leicester City have completed the signing of winger Stephy Mavididi from Ligue Un side Montpellier. The 25-year-old Derby native is the first purely attacking player to join Enzo Maresca’s rebuilding project at the King Power.

The winger played 11 matches with Arsenal’s junior side in 2016/17 before going out on loan to Charlton Athletic. The following campaign was spent in the Championship with Charlton and Preston North End.

In 2018/19 he played one match for the Gunners’ youth side before moving to Juventus. He played 32 matches for the Italian giants’ youth side before making a single appearance for the Serie A champions. The Old Lady sent him on loan to Dijon the following season before selling him to Montpellier for €6.3MM.

Mavididi found a home in France, making 108 appearances for the Occitania side. This number set a record for most appearances by an English player in Ligue Un. He scored 21 goals for La Paillade playing primarily on the left wing.

While he is eligible to play for the Congo national team, Mavididi has appeared exclusively in the England youth setup, playing for the U17s-20s. It has been six years since he has featured internationally.

What Does He Bring To The King Power?

Mavididi becomes the second City player to have “didi” on the back of his shirt, which is clearly the primary reason for bringing him on board.

In terms of footballing, he’s very much a replacement for Harvey Barnes circa 2022/23. Of the ten “most-similar” players listed on FBRef.com, Barnes is #9 so they are genuinely similar players. Mavididi is much more likely to dribble and shoot than, say, pass, or at least that’s been the case in the past. In 8,260 minutes of league play, he’s amassed 6 assists. That’s not a fluke; his xAG over that time is 6.6.

One area where our newest Fox clearly surpasses the man he’s replacing in the defensive effort. He’s well above average when it comes to tackles, blocks, clearances, and aerials won. Anyone who remembers Ben Chilwell holding his arms up when trying to defend against two attackers while Barnes was MIA is sure to appreciate these traits.

The folks at WhoScored.com are somewhat less impressed with our newest charge. They list “long shots” as his only notable strength while finding him wanting in most other areas. We’re going to chalk this up to Mavididi having primarily been used as a substitute. The WhoScored rating system often knocks players who regularly come off the bench.