Leicester City have completed the signing of Nigerian midfielder Joe Aribo on loan from Southampton until the end of the season, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The 29-year-old arrives at the King Power Stadium to bolster Leicester’s injury-hit midfield, with Jordan James and Aaron Ramsey out until March, while Hamza Choudhury is due to have a scan on a potentially serious knee injury this week.
The club have also sold Boubakary Soumare, the Frenchman leaving for Qatar last week.
Out of favour with the Saints, where he has made just seven Championship appearances this season, none as a starter, Aribo is out of contract in the summer, and so if he performs well, Leicester could pick him up on a free transfer.
It is expected that Aribo will rival Louis Page in Leicester’s number eight position while James is out, but he is a midfield all-rounder and could potentially play in any of the three roles Leicester have in the centre of the pitch.
Coming through non-league, Aribo moved from Staines Town to Charlton Athletic and then got a big move to Rangers, where he had perhaps his best form.
He helped the Scottish club win the Scottish Premiership and reach the final of the Europa League, scoring 18 goals and providing 11 assists in 92 league appearances across three seasons.
The London-born midfielder joined Southampton in 2022 and featured in 32 of the Saints’ 38 Premier League matches last season, scoring three goals.
However, relegation to the Championship and a change in the technical crew have limited his involvement this term.
Former Southampton boss Russell Martin, who is linked with the Leicester job, coached Aribo during the previous two seasons and praised the midfielder’s character.
Following a 5-0 play-off win against Swansea in which Aribo opened the scoring, Martin said, “He’s been amazing. But he’s been a brilliant teammate, an amazing character, as you know. He’s humble, works hard, smiling.”
Aribo remains a fan favourite at Rangers’ Ibrox, having written his name into the club’s recent history by scoring in their Europa League final defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022.
Southampton interim coach Tonda Eckert had earlier indicated the club was open to player exits during the January transfer window.
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