Emil Riis finally completes deadline day transfer to solve Leicester City's biggest problem

Emil Riis has joined Leicester City from Bristol City in a deal that took the entire summer to complete, arriving just hours after the Foxes claimed their first league win of the season. The Danish forward gives Russell Martin exactly the kind of proven finisher his side had been missing.

Riis signed a four-year contract after Leicester finally agreed an undisclosed fee with Bristol City, with the move completed too late for him to feature in Tuesday's 2-0 win over Plymouth Argyle. It ends a pursuit Martin described as having taken "a long while," with the move only becoming possible once Leicester had cleared space in their forward line through a series of deadline-day departures.

Why Emil Riis was the striker Leicester needed all along

Leicester's opening weeks of the League One season laid bare a clear pattern: plenty of chances created, not enough of them finished. Riis arrives with a track record built for exactly that problem, having finished as Bristol City's top scorer last season with 12 goals and three assists across all competitions. Before that, he spent four and a half years at Preston North End, where he scored 41 goals in 172 league appearances, giving him a proven scoring record across two separate Championship clubs. At 28, he arrives with the kind of experience Martin explicitly said his squad needed, rather than another developing talent still finding his level.

Emil Riis' numbers heading into his Leicester City move

The Dane's underlying output over the past few seasons explains exactly why Leicester were willing to wait out a deal that dragged on for months.

• Last season at Bristol City: 12 goals and three assists in all competitions, finishing as the club's top scorer.
• Preston North End record: 41 goals in 172 league appearances across four and a half seasons at Deepdale.
• Contract: Signed a four-year deal at the King Power Stadium after his move from Ashton Gate.
• Debut timeline: Missed Tuesday's win over Plymouth but is in contention to feature this weekend against Oxford United.

What Russell Martin said about finally landing his target

Martin didn't hide how significant the signing was to him personally, telling Radio Leicester that Riis had been his first-choice target for some time but that the move depended on other business being sorted first. He thanked the player for waiting throughout the process, a rare show of patience from a forward who could easily have forced a move elsewhere earlier in the window. That level of commitment suggests Riis arrives fully bought into Martin's project, rather than simply as a fallback option once other targets fell through.

What Emil Riis' arrival means for Leicester City's season

With Leicester having finally picked up their first league win before Riis' move was even confirmed, the timing couldn't have worked out much better for a club looking to build momentum. Adding a proven Championship-level goalscorer gives Martin considerably more attacking firepower than his side has shown in the opening weeks, and if Riis can replicate his Bristol City form at League One level, Leicester's promotion credentials will look a great deal stronger heading into the autumn.