The Foxes' core keeps dissolving
Leicester City's off-season just hit another severe speed bump. Everton officially confirmed the signing of Finland international striker Jutta Rantala today, continuing a trend that should have everyone at King Power deeply concerned.
Rantala isn't just a squad player taking a step up. She was Leicester's focal point up top, providing the essential outlet and vertical threat that kept opposing center-backs honest throughout last campaign. Losing her to a direct midfield-to-lower-table rival like Everton is a massive blow to Leicester's survival prospects for the upcoming season.
This transfer isn't an isolated incident either. Rantala becomes merely the latest Leicester player to make the switch to Merseyside, joining a growing exodus heading west. When a club continually bleeds its core talent to teams in its own competitive tier, it betrays a fundamental structural issue in player retention.
Everton capitalize while Leicester stall
For Everton, this is shrewd, opportunistic recruitment. Brian Sørensen's side struggled for consistent final-third output last year, often dominating early phase progression only to stall out around the 18-yard box. Bringing in a forward with proven WSL adaptation and elite movement in tight spaces fixes a immediate tactical flaw.
Rantala registered 6 goals and 3 assists in WSL play last term while operating in a team that generated just 0.94 xG per 90. Give her better dynamic support from Everton's wide areas, and those numbers will naturally jump. Everton are quietly assembling a roster capable of comfortably pushing into the top half of the table.
Leicester, meanwhile, look completely adrift. Their press resistance drops significantly without Rantala's ability to pin center-backs and hold up long aerial balls. Replacement options in the current market are sparse, and Leicester's recruitment department has repeatedly shown a reluctance to pull the trigger early in windows.
The prediction: Leicester are bound for a relegation scrap
Let's not sugarcoat this. Everton secured an upper-tier asset while direct competitors stand still. Leicester City were already teetering on the edge of the drop zone last season, relying heavily on individual moments of brilliance from their attacking line to scrape points against bottom-four opposition.
With Rantala gone to Everton, Leicester lose 31% of their direct goal contributions from 2025-26. Unless Leicester pull off two top-tier attacking signings before deadline day, they are the prime candidates to finish in the bottom two spots. Everton will comfortably secure 7th or higher, while Leicester face a long, brutal winter fighting off relegation.
