Football fans everywhere would have been shocked when Jamie Vardy unveiled his next club, after a 13-year stay at Leicester City.
Indeed, nobody would have been anticipating that Vardy would swap the King Power for a move to Cremonese in the Serie A.
It hasn't been all smooth sailing for Vardy since moving out to Italy , but the 39-year-old has been rolling back the years in recent matches for his Serie A employers, as they continue to battle against the drop.
The Sheffield-born striker had only bagged one league goal across the entirety of 2026, until Pisa came to town earlier this month.
Against bottom of the table Pisa, Vardy would spearhead his Serie A minnows to an emphatic 3-0 win, as he opened the scoring to break the deadlock.
Away at Udinese, the match directly after the showdown with the league's basement side, Vardy was in amongst the goals again, as his ninth-minute opener, which was a typically instinctive finish, was the only strike of the game.
Cremonese still heartbreakingly remain in the relegation spots, despite Vardy's Leicester-like heroics returning, with one final game of the season left, as Cremonese would likely need to win, and Lecce to lose, to stay put in the Italian top-flight.
The 39-year-old was a man born for these pressures, with the one-time Premier League winner powering home 200 goals in total for the Foxes, when they were fighting near the top of the division, or holding on to their top-flight status.
Nearly 40 years of age, now, it's clear that Vardy isn't going to be winding down his playing days in a subdued manner anytime soon.
He could even return to English shores during the transfer window to come, in another late career twist.
Reports seem to suggest that Vardy could return to England, not with Leicester, but with boyhood side Sheffield Wednesday, which would be a romantic ending to a distinguished career.
Once a youth player with the Owls, before having to make a name for himself in the non-league scene in Yorkshire with Stocksbridge Park Steels, this would be a poignant way for the veteran to bring the curtain down on his playing days.
Yet, with Leicester also occupying League One next season, alongside Wednesday, there will surely be a part of the Foxes that would love to tempt one of their modern-day greats back to the King Power for one final hurrah.
Before anyone gets too carried away about what Vardy's short-term future in the beautiful game holds, the seasoned poacher will be purely focused on attempting to secure Cremonese's Serie A status on the final day of the season.
Cremonese will have to overcome Como , who are managed by Cesc Fabregas , who will know all too well what Vardy is capable of, having scored against the Blues during Leicester's title-winning campaign in a 2-1 win on home soil.
Now, the Spaniard will be tasked with nullifying Vardy from the sidelines, as another fantastic career highlight could be added to his varied CV, if he can keep Cremonese up.
This article was originally published on www.foxesofleicester.com as Jamie Vardy stuck in relegation battle despite Leicester-like goalscoring heroics .
