Alessandro Circati had a trial with Leicester City but instead chose to join Italian side Parma.
The young centre-back, who was gifted the chance to play for the Foxes nearly three years ago, surprised fans after he appeared to reject the opportunity to join a then-Premier League side.
However, according to the defender himself, who spoke in a recent interview, the 20-year-old’s decision to play in his homeland was one he could do little about.
Explaining how the public’s decision to leave the European Union meant he could not work in Britain, Circati said: “I was at Leicester for about three months and had been given the chance to sign there, but because of Brexit, which came into effect on January 1st, I wasn’t allowed to stay.
“So I came back here because my family is not too far away and I had the opportunity to do some training at Collecchio. After about a week of training they took me aside and told me they would like to have me for the rest of the season. I took a weight off my shoulders after signing for a big club. It was my dream.”
Since being promoted to Parma’s first team 18 months ago, Circati, who has three-and-a-half-years left on his contract, has directly contributed to one goal in 24 games in all competitions.