Leicester City are on the verge of announcing right-back Woyo Coulibaly as their first signing of the January transfer window.
News broke on Friday that Leicester were set to sign Coulibaly for £2.5m from Serie A side Parma with a deal edging closer to being announced.
Coulibaly was even left out of Parma’s squad on Sunday for their 1-0 defeat against Genoa, resulting in further speculation over the 25-year-old’s transfer.
Ruud van Nistelrooy was coy when asked about Coulibaly following Leicester’s 6-2 victory over QPR in the FA Cup.
However, it seems improbable that the France-born full-back will become the first player to arrive at the King Power Stadium, in a move that could see one player depart.
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Woyo Coulibaly’s arrival could see Caleb Okoli exit Leicester City
It isn’t just transfers through the door at Leicester that have dominated the headlines, with it likely that some stars could exit the club this month, including centre-back Caleb Okoli.
Leicester only signed Okoli for £14 million from Atalanta in the summer. However, the 23-year-old is yet to start a Premier League game under van Nistelrooy, resulting in just 80 minutes of action since November.
A lack of game time for the powerful Nigerian has prompted speculation over his future, and according to Italian outlet Stadio Tardini, the young defender could exit the club following the arrival of Coulibaly.
The report claims Okoli is ‘particularly liked’ by Parma manager Fabio Pecchia, who worked with the Foxes star at Serie B side US Cremonense in the 2021/22 campaign.
Now, in a potential transfer domino effect, the pair could reunite at Parma in this transfer window once Leicester confirm their first signing.
Leicester need to sign a centre-back
Coulibaly joining Leicester only fixes half of the problem for van Nistelrooy, who desperately needs to sign a centre-back this month.
There’s a distinct lack of mobility among his current defensive options, with Jannik Vestergaard, Conor Coady, Okoli and Faes not possessing the recovery pace or agility to keep the Foxes up.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 17 |  WolvesWolves | 20 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 31 | 45 | -14 | 16 |
| 18 |  IpswichIpswich | 20 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 20 | 35 | -15 | 16 |
| 19 |  LeicesterLeicester | 20 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 23 | 44 | -21 | 14 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 20 | 1 | 3 | 16 | 12 | 44 | -32 | 6 |
The league’s second-worst defence must invest in a new centre-back to go straight into the starting lineup, especially if Okoli leaves, with van Nistelrooy needing to shore up his backline.
Leicester have been linked with many central defenders so far but none of the speculation has come to fruition.
It is therefore crucial that, before the transfer deadline, van Nistelrooy finds the perfect long-term successor to Coady and Vestergaard who can perhaps galvanise a survival push.