Tete: Leicester City sign Shakhtar Donetsk winger until June as Lyon loan ends
- Published
Tete scored for Shakhtar in a 3-2 win against Real Madrid in the Champions League during October 2020
Leicester City have signed Brazilian winger Tete from Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk until June.
The 22-year-old had been on loan at French side Lyon since March 2022 following the suspension of his contract with Shakhtar.
World governing body Fifa ruled, external foreign players in Ukraine could suspend their contracts until 30 June 2023 following Russia's invasion of the country.
Leicester say the forward is "currently due to return to Shakhtar on 1 July".
Tete, who made 30 appearances for Lyon with eight goals and 10 assists, remains under contract at Shakhtar until the end of 2023.
"I'm really happy to be here," said Tete after arriving at the King Power Stadium.
"I've had a look at the pitch and the stadium, it's beautiful and I can already imagine what it'll be like with a lot of fans.
"I hope to score a lot of goals and assists. I hope they'll all be happy to see me play, I'm happy to be a Fox."
Leicester are 14th in the Premier League but only one point above the relegation zone.
'Tete will add flair, threat and goals' - analysis
Owynn Palmer-Atkin, BBC Radio Leicester
Tete becomes Leicester's second January signing. The deal is only six months long - and there's a complicated reason behind this
Because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, he was able to sign for Lyon until the end of the season. Leicester have essentially bought him out of that deal, but he still has a contract with Shakhtar Donetsk until 31 December this year.
This means that the Foxes will have to renegotiate for their first Brazilian player again in the summer, should they want to sign him permanently.
Alternatively, they could sign him on a pre-contract agreement for free in the summer - but he would only be able to join following the expiration of his Shakhtar deal on 31 December.
He will add much needed flair, threat and goals to the forward line as the Foxes prepare themselves for a relegation battle.
Perhaps most importantly, he will be able to play on the right wing, which will free playmaker James Maddison to come back into the midfield. That could be key to the rest of the season for Leicester.
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