Sam Hughes' stock continues to rise at Leicester City.
The former Chester FC defender - a graduate of the Blues' academy set up - netted what proved to be the winner for the Foxes at Scunthorpe United in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday night, firing home in the 12th minute at Glanford Park to earn a 2-1 win for Steve Beaglehole's young charges.
And Hughes was in good company in the victory.
The Foxes fielded a strong under-23s side, with Hughes lining up alongside £45m worth of Premier League talent as the likes of £25m Kelechi Iheanacho, Leandro Ulloa and Daniel Amartey played in the success.
Hughes, 20, has made big strides at the King Power Stadium since his move from the Blues in the summer for a fee in the region of £130,000 plus add ons.
The Blues were proved correct in their decision to reject a far lower offer from Barnsley in January of this year as interest heated up in the young defender, who was spotted by the Blues playing for local side West Kirby Wasps.
Many a Championship and Premier League club sent scouts to monitor Hughes, with Fulham, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Crystal Palace all known admirers.
Everton, too, showed an interest in the defender but passed up on taking their interest further.
Their loss.
It was a future Toffees defender who would prove key to prompting the Foxes to make a move for Hughes.
When considering whether to make a bid for the defender the Leicester recruitment team pored over videos of Everton defender Michael Keane during his time at Burnley.
The reason? To see how he handled Lincoln City striker Matt Rhead.
Rhead was a star performer for Lincoln last season and a key figure in their magnificent run to the FA Cup quarter finals and was simply superb in the 1-0 win over Burnley at Turf Moor in the fifth round that booked a trip to Arsenal in the last eight.
Leicester staff reviewed how England international Keane, who joined the Toffees for an initial £25m in the summer, handled the threat of Rhead during the game.
They then looked at footage of how Hughes went about his business against the physical targetman during Chester's encounter with the Imps at Sincil Bank in April.
And having compared the two they believed that it was Hughes who coped the best with the threat of Rhead, enough to prompt them into making a bid for the defender, who signed a three-year contract in June.
Here's hoping he goes on to enjoy similar success to Keane in the coming years. He's started on the right track.
