Leicester's Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez going nowhere

By Peter Gilbert

Image: Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez have helped Leicester secure 39 points from 19 games in the Premier League this season

Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez will not be leaving Leicester in the January transfer window, insists Leicester boss Claudio Ranieri.

The in-form duo have played key roles for the high-flying Foxes this season which has led to speculation linking the freescoring forwards with big-money moves away from Leicester.

Vardy is the Premier League's joint-top scorer with 15 goals while Mahrez has been involved in more goals than any other player in the top division scoring 13 and laying on 7 assists.

Newspaper reports have claimed Chelsea and Man City have been keeping tabs on Vardy while Mahrez's displays have reportedly attracted the interest of Arsenal, Barcelona and Manchester.

Despite the speculation Ranieri has remained adamant that the pair would be staying put and speaking at his press conference ahead of Saturday's clash with Bournemouth the Italian again insists neither player is looking to leave the King Power Stadium.

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Image: Claudio Ranieri says no one will be leaving Leicester in January

"Nobody goes from Leicester," said Ranieri.  

"They have said they want to stay and fight until the end and build with me and the chairman and our fans a big Leicester.

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"We are a solid team and we want to continue together with everybody."

Ranieri also preferred to leave talk about possible contract extensions for the pair - who between them have scored 28 goals in the Premier League this season - to one side.

England striker Vardy's current deal lasts until the summer of 2018 while Algeria winger Mahrez is under contract until 2019.

Claudio Ranieri expects his players to be ready to face Bournemouth on Saturday but says he will not be stopping them celebrating New Year's Eve

Ranieri added: "They are concentrating, they must be very professional. It is not important now the contract.

"They have their agents but it is another thing to play. For this reason they pay their agents to think about the contract.

"If they think about too many other things and not the real job, they will not continue to improve."

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