Jamie Vardy will not be joining a Serie A side after their Premier League great of a manager vetoed the move, according to a report.
Vardy brought an end to his legendary Leicester career at the end of the season, netting his 200th goal for the club in his final game.
The 38-year-old has made it clear that he has no plans to retire and has been linked with a move to Genoa in recent weeks.
However, the Italian media claim that move will not be taking place with the club’s manager stepping in to shut it down.
Genoa’s boss is Arsenal icon Patrick Vieira, a key member of the historic ‘Invincibles’ side of 2004.
And La Repubblica claim that Vardy was closing in on a switch to Genoa after the expiration of his Foxes contract.
They say that won’t be happening with Vieira unconvinced by the former England striker and overruling the move.
Genoa sporting director Flavio Ricciardella was working on the deal with Vardy with sponsors due to cover his wage with the Serie A side.
Vardy now looks likely to continue his career in Scotland with Rangers leading the race for his signature.
Como and Nottingham Forest have also been linked with the Premier League veteran, who won 26 caps for England.
A source close to Vieira has denied the initial report and clarified the manager is still evaluating his options for a new striker signing this summer.
After finishing his playing career at Man City, Vieira’s first managerial post was at New York City FC. The Major League Soccer side are part of City Football Group founded by Man City owner Sheikh Mansour.
Vieira won many admirers during his two-and-a-half-year stint with NYCFC, guiding to the club from 17th in 2015 to a fourth-place finish in his first season and then second the following year.
The Arsenal ‘Invincible’ was even tipped to replace Arsene Wenger when the Gunners’ boss left the Emirates in 2018.
Instead, Vieira went to Ligue 1 club Nice where he achieved seventh and fifth-placed finishes during his two full seasons which persuaded Crystal Palace to make him Roy Hodgson’s successor in 2021.
His stint at Selhurst Park start well as he led the Eagles to a 12th-placed finish in his first season, earning praise for an attacking style.
Things declined sharply in his second season, however, and he was sacked after a run of 12 games without a win with the club scoring just 21 goals in 27 matches.
Vieira then served just one year of a three-year deal at Strasbourg before stepping down and taking up his position at Genoa four months later.
