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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE-BORN teenage sensation Tawanda Maswanhise has taken his fledgling football career a step higher after he signed a new professional contract with English Premiership side Leicester City.
The 19-year-old winger is one of the 15 players that have been offered professional contracts by the Foxes after impressing in their Under-23 side.
Maswanhise signed his first professional deal with Leicester City in June 2021 and was recently offered a new contract after he continued to show promise in his development.
And he has since put pen to paper to a new long-term professional contract along with a host of other Leicester City development players that agreed to new contracts, among them Kasey McAteer, Sammy Braybrooke, Ben Nelson, Ben Grist and Wanya Marcal-Madivadua.
The Foxes also announced contracts for those players to have joined from other academies over the past year or so and these included Lewis Brunt (Aston Villa), Brad Young (Hartlepool), Ben Grist (Grimsby), Ronny Nelson (Gillingham), Bayli Spencer-Adams (Watford), Lestyn Hughes and Under-18s top scorer Chris Popov (both Manchester United).
Midfielders Ethan Fitzhugh and Zach Booth and striker Will Russ complete the 15.
A number of Academy graduates have progressed to the Leicester City’s First Team in recent seasons and the future looks bright for Maswanhise whose career has been on the rise.
“With a host of talent continuing to come through the ranks at the Club’s famous Academy, a number of its brightest prospects have committed to continuing their development with the club by putting pen to paper on professional terms with the Foxes,” said Leicester City in a statement on Tuesday afternoon.
“The club have a proud history of developing young players for the First Team, with Academy graduates Harvey Barnes, Hamza Choudhury, Luke Thomas and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall all progressing through the pathway in recent seasons . . .
“Tawanda Maswanhise, meanwhile, was named in Brendan Rodgers’ squad for the first-time last season for the trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United and after the 19-year-old’s involvement with the First Team’s pre-season fixtures this summer, he continues to show promise in his development . . .
“Finally, 17-year-old Welsh striker Chris Popov and fellow countryman Will Russ, 19, have also put pen-to-paper on professional contracts during an incredibly exciting time for the next generation of Foxes stars.
“All players will now continue their development through the Club’s pathway at Under-18s and Under-23s levels as they strive to join the first team ranks in the future.”
While Maswanhise has now spent a decade in the Foxes development structures, his performances in the last two seasons have brought him to the fore as one of the brightest prospects from the current Foxes development squad.
However, his father, Jeffrey Maswanhise, a former Zimbabwean athlete, believes his son is now ripe for first team football.
Jeffrey Maswanhise was not available for comment yesterday but a source close to the family said he was keen for his son to be loaned elsewhere where he can continue to play competitive football as part of his development.
Tawanda Maswanhise recently jumped from the Under-18s to the Under-23 side where he is now a vital cog.
His performances in the Under-18s caught the attention of first team coach Brendan Rodgers who last year made him a surprise inclusion in the match day squad for the league match against Manchester United.
He was also drafted in Zimbabwe’s provisional squad for the recent AFCON finals by interim national team coach Norman Mapeza, but he pulled out after failing to secure a Zimbabwean passport in time.
Tawanda Maswanhise’s progress at Leicester City has been non-negotiable. He was one of the few academy players that had the privilege to train and feature in friendly games with the senior team during the club’s pre-season.
He continued the form in the current season from where had left off with the Under-18s. Maswanhise is currently the Foxes Under-23 side’s leading goal-scorer with nine goals from 18 Premier League 2 appearances.
The teenage winger has put in such a marvelous individual shift and scored some spectacular goals, including the excellent strike against Everton Under-23s which earned him the September Goal of the Month award ahead of established first team players like Jamie Vardy and Kelechi Iheanacho.
While he is more naturally a winger, Tawanda Maswanhise has played a handful of games up front this season with the Under-23s.
First team coach Rodgers has expressed his admiration for the young Zimbabwean. Having featured regularly, and performed very well, in pre-season matches, he is clearly a player that Rodgers and the club feel there is a bright future for. Rodgers has been keen not to introduce young players into senior football too early for fear of that having a long-term damaging effect on their career, but an FA Cup game, perhaps where the pressure, intensity and quality is not quite so high as in the Premier League, may provide an ideal moment for a player to be handed their debut.
Online Reporter