The rise of Choudhury… Leicester’s starlet who played key role in shock wins

It was before Christmas when Leicester City boss Claude Puel suggested academy graduate Hamza Choudhury would go out on loan in January.

There is little chance of that happening now. The 21-year-old has started the last two Premier League matches and his introduction to the team has coincided with victories over Chelsea and Manchester City.

Here, we take a closer look at the midfield star who has stood out for far more than his distinctive hairstyle over the festive period…

What is his background?

Choudhury was born in Loughborough, his mum is from Bangladesh and his dad is from Grenada, and joined Leicester’s academy aged seven. He has been a regular at matches ever since, first as a fan and now as the latest young prospect to make the step up to the senior ranks.

He became the first player of Bangladeshi descent to play in the Premier League when making his debut last November as a late substitute in a 2-1 win over Spurs. Before that he enjoyed two loan spells at Burton Albion, helping them to promotion from League One in 2016.

Choudhury is seen a pioneer for players of Asian background, but he recently said: ‘I don’t really feel any pressure about being a professional from an Asian background. My family have been a great help with that, just telling me to enjoy it. If I turned around tomorrow and said I didn’t want to play football any more they would support me.’

Why has he suddenly been re-introduced to the team?

His start at Stamford Bridge on Saturday was his first league appearance of the season after impressing as captain for the club’s Under-23s. It came with Puel under pressure amid reports that his job was on the line.

The French boss responded by switching to a 4-5-1 formation with rookie Choudhury in the centre of midfield alongside Wilfred Ndidi and Nampalys Mendy and it was that trio who provided the backbone for a 1-0 win.

Choudhury’s involvement came on the back of a start in the ELF Cup loss to Manchester City on December 18, after which Puel had said: ‘I don’t know his future or whether he will remain with us or we put him on loan, but it was important to give him confidence. He played a strong game and showed his quality at a high level. It was the same last season with Ben Chilwell and now he is with the national team.’

He kept his place at Chelsea and then again for the league renewal with City on Boxing Day, where again he starred in the come-from-behind 2-1 victory.

Puel has compared him to Chilwell?

Yes, in that a player can very quickly progress from the fringes of the first team to international level given exposure and improvement.

Choudhury made his debut for England Under-21s in May and now has four caps. However, we have seen with the likes of Chilwell and Leicester team-mate James Maddison how playing regularly for an established top-flight side can soon lead to a senior call-up.

Given that Choudhury was born and raised in England, there has never been an issue regarding his allegiance and Gareth Southgate will be very much aware of a player who already looks to have a maturity beyond his years.

What is his situation at Leicester?

They tied him down to a new deal which runs until 2022 last month, and he said: ‘I don’t know if I can quite put it into words – to sign a new deal here and obviously stay here for hopefully many years to come is incredible. When I joined, it was clear that it was a family club, I think that’s why me and my family chose Leicester.’

Before he signed a professional deal aged 16 there were reports of both Barcelona and Real Madrid monitoring his situation, especially given his early elevation to the England Under-18 set-up.

What is his style of play?

He has everything a midfield players needs - good engine, range of passing and aggression. He broke up play well against Chelsea but was then seen popping up in the box versus City on Boxing Day.

Team-mate Danny Simpson observed: ‘He came in and looked like he had been playing week in, week out. Hamza had no fear and was getting stuck in.’

So what next?

Given that Puel looks safe in his job - at least for now - it is likely he will keep faith with those who have eased the pressure and Choudhury should start at home to Cardiff on Saturday.

After that, it would be a big surprise to see him depart on loan in the New Year, which just goes to show how quickly things can change when young English players are given their chance.