Leicester City Sign Experienced Goalkeeper Dai Cornell
Leicester City have moved to plug their goalkeeping gap by signing experienced Welsh stopper Dai Cornell on a one-year deal.
The 35-year-old arrives as a free agent after leaving Preston North End in the summer, despite being offered fresh terms by the Championship club. He now drops into League One with the Foxes, who are pushing for an immediate return to the second tier.
The need was urgent. Jakub Stolarczyk’s season-ending knee injury in early September left Leicester light in a key position, and the club have turned to a man who has quietly built a career out of reliability and resilience.
Martin backs character as much as gloves
Russell Martin made it clear this is not just a short-term patch-up signing. For him, Cornell’s influence will stretch well beyond the 90 minutes.
“He understands the role he is going to fulfil here, but he also backs himself to show what a good goalkeeper he is,” the Leicester boss told BBC Radio Leicester. “But first and foremost, he is a brilliant character and really adds to the character, voice and experience in this squad.”
That blend of self-belief and acceptance of the job at hand is exactly what Martin wants in a dressing room already shaped around a promotion push.
Cornell, for his part, has kept his message simple. He says he is keen to “help in any way” he can at the Foxes, a line that fits the profile Leicester are buying: a seasoned professional ready to slot in, support, and step up when called upon.
A career built on hard yards
Leicester become the 11th club of Cornell’s career, one that began at Swansea City and has taken him across the English and Scottish leagues. His CV includes spells with St Mirren, Portsmouth, Oldham, Northampton, Peterborough, Ipswich Town and Preston, a route that underlines why managers trust his experience.
Inside the current Foxes set-up, former Southampton keeper Alex McCarthy has been the mainstay between the posts so far this season, with once-capped England international status adding weight to his selection. Behind him, Argentine Franco Ravizzoli, a summer signing from Blackpool, has occupied the bench since Stolarczyk was ruled out.
Now Cornell joins that group, adding another layer of depth and know-how to a promotion-chasing squad that can ill afford another slip in such a decisive position.
