Caglar Soyuncu 'to sign pre-contract agreement to join Atletico Madrid'

Caglar Soyuncu is reportedly on the verge of signing a pre-contract agreement to join Atletico Madrid this summer after falling out of favour at Leicester.

The Turkey international joined the Foxes for £20m in 2018 and took to life brilliantly initially in England, though has seen his career tail off in recent seasons amid a series of errors and concerns over his suitability to the Premier League.

According to The Athletic, Soyuncu, 26, is set to join the Spanish club this summer after agreeing a pre-contract agreement.

Atletico Madrid are currently third in LaLiga, behind just Real Madrid and Barcelona, and have enjoyed a significant uptick in their fortunes since the World Cup.

It had been speculated that Simeone could depart this summer after more than 10 years at the club, particularly earlier this year when his tenure had appeared to run its course amid reports of player discontent, not least related to Joao Felix.

Soyuncu will thus join a club set to once again be in the Champions League next season as Simeone looks to build another side that will challenge the might of Spain's traditional big two.

Having fallen out of favour at Leicester, it is a move that might surprise some connected to the club, particularly considering the oft-comical nature of the club's defensive efforts in the later Brendan Rodgers years.

However, Soyuncu has played the full 90 minutes in both of Dean Smith's games in charge, including the crucial come-from-behind win against Wolves on Saturday.

The 2-1 victory hauled Leicester out of the relegation zone and, albeit perhaps briefly, stopped the rot at a club which had begun to look doomed.

'It means nothing, we need to keep climbing out of there and separate ourselves as much as we can,' Smith said afterwards.

'We will enjoy this moment and how it feels to win a game after a while and get ready for Tuesday and Leeds.

'It’s a massive win, one we’ve needed. It shows an awful lot of character to come from a goal down and a mistake which led to a goal. Mentally it will give all the players a lift.

'I think there’s relief because of the run we’ve been on. I’ve just addressed them in the dressing room and said, ‘enjoy it but don’t get too high because we’ve got another big game on Tuesday’ and recovery is the most important thing for them now.'

Soyuncu is one of eight players whose contract is set to expire this summer, with Leicester mired in a deep financial crisis that could have even wider implications should they get relegated.

Youri Tielemans, Tete, Daniel Amartey, Nampalys Mendy, Jonny Evans, Ryan Bertrand and Ayoze Perez (currently on loan to Real Betis) are the other players who look set to depart this summer on free transfers.