Claudio Ranieri has been sacked as Leicester City manager nine months after winning Premier League title
Ranieri's sack as Leicester City manager came on Thursday night, nine months after guiding the club to the first top-flight trophy in their 133-year history.
Ranieri returned to East Midlands Airport from Seville in the afternoon to be given the news by Leicester’s director of football Jon Rudkin in a ruthless move which has stunned football as much as their remarkable title win.
Leicester's fairytale came to an end this season as the Foxes are now fighting relegation. Nine months after their Premier League triumph, the club sacked the Premier League's most loveable manager, Claudio Ranieri.
The 65-year-old has struggled throughout a feeble title defence, bewildering players with tactics and team selection and allegedly marginalising backroom staff, but Leicester’s Thai owners are still facing severe criticism after opting to dismiss the Italian.
Earlier this month they had released a statement declaring unwavering support for Ranieri, but the 2-0 defeat against Swansea is thought to have seriously alarmed the club hierarchy and forced a swift rethink.
And with Leicester only a point off the Premier League’s relegation zone the club have acted in a desperate bid to avoid relegation to the Championship. The decision comes less than 24 hours after a creditable 2-1 defeat to Seville in the Champions League first leg.
Former Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink is on Leicester City’s shortlist to replace Claudio Ranieri, according to reports.
The Italian was sacked by Leicester on Thursday evening just nine months after guiding the club to the Premier League title.
The 65-year-old was told the news on Thursday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the team’s 2-1 defeat to Sevilla in the Champions League.
Leicester, who defied odds of 5,000/1 with their title upset last year, are currently 17th in the Premier League and just a point above the relegation zone.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Hiddink is one of the candidates Leicester are considering to replace Ranieri.
The Dutchman has not managed a team since he left Chelsea at the end of last season, having taken temporary charge at Stamford Bridge following Jose Mourinho’s sacking in December 2015.
Former Leicester City boss Nigel Pearson is also being considered by the Foxes’ Thai owners.
Why Ranieri was sacked
The Daily Telegraph revealed earlier this month that Ranieri’s methods have been confusing and angering the players who last season lifted the title for some time.
They included the bizarre instruction to train on the morning of the FA Cup tie at Derby County, while he has also frequently changed tactics without warning less than two hours before kick-off.
In the 0-0 draw in Copenhagen in November, he angrily confronted a popular member of the backroom staff over a row about the players wearing the wrong football studs.
It is also understood that earlier this year when Leicester’s players held talks to force a return to the tactics of last season - essentially 4-4-2 with the plan to counter-attack - Ranieri waved them away and insisted there should be only one voice at the club.
His treatment of Demarai Gray has also been a constant source of irritation, with Ranieri dropping the talented winger in favour of £15million signing Ahmed Musa, who has horribly underachieved since joining from CSKA Moscow.
Sources have also claimed that the mood in the dressing room in recent months has been “totally flat”, with some players even accepting that relegation was inevitable unless Ranieri left the club.
It is a scenario which reeks of player power, similar to Jose Mourinho’s demise at Chelsea last season, yet there has been a growing sense that Leicester were only heading one way.
Leicester’s vice-chairman, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, said: “This has been the most difficult decision we have had to make in nearly seven years since King Power took ownership of Leicester City. But we are duty-bound to put the club’s long-term interests above all sense of personal sentiment, no matter how strong that might be.
“Claudio has brought outstanding qualities to his office. His skilful management, powers of motivation and measured approach have been reflective of the rich experience we always knew he would bring to Leicester City. His warmth, charm and charisma have helped transform perceptions of the club and develop its profile on a global scale. We will forever be grateful to him for what he has helped us to achieve.
“It was never our expectation that the extraordinary feats of last season should be replicated this season. Indeed, survival in the Premier League was our first and only target at the start of the campaign. But we are now faced with a fight to reach that objective and feel a change is necessary to maximise the opportunity presented by the final 13 games.”
Ranieri was rewarded with a new contract for his part in the title win, doubling his pay to around £3million a year, but the problems arguably started in pre-season.
Leicester’s tour of Los Angeles, to take part in the International Champions Cup, irked players and even Ranieri’s genial demeanour slipped at times during their stay.
The club’s recruitment – so highly revered in the past – has also been a disaster and signings such as Musa, Islam Slimani, Papy Mendy, Ron-Robert Zieler and Luis Hernandez (the latter has already left) have all struggled despite a spend of over £60million.
Steve Walsh, the man who helped discover the likes of N’Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy, departed to join Everton as director of football in a clear sign of friction at the top.
The January window was also excruciating, with £15million spent on Wilfried Ndidi and a deadline day capture of Molla Wague from Udinese – a player who had not made a competitive club appearance since November.
Ranieri is understood to have harboured serious concern over Leicester’s failure to recruit a top centre-half, with the club reluctant to pay £25million for Burnley’s Michael Keane in the summer. Without strengthening that position, Leicester have had no option but to stick with captain Wes Morgan and Robert Huth, who have a combined age of 65.
Now Leicester must mount a revival after only five league wins all season, with a home game against Liverpool on Monday night.
Last season’s champions then face Hull City a week on Saturday in a potentially crucial encounter at the King Power Stadium. For Ranieri, it is a case of Dilly Ding, Dilly Gone.
Ranieri's sack as Leicester City manager came on Thursday night, nine months after guiding the club to the first top-flight trophy in their 133-year history.
Ranieri returned to East Midlands Airport from Seville in the afternoon to be given the news by Leicester’s director of football Jon Rudkin in a ruthless move which has stunned football as much as their remarkable title win.
Leicester's fairytale came to an end this season as the Foxes are now fighting relegation. Nine months after their Premier League triumph, the club sacked the Premier League's most loveable manager, Claudio Ranieri.
The 65-year-old has struggled throughout a feeble title defence, bewildering players with tactics and team selection and allegedly marginalising backroom staff, but Leicester’s Thai owners are still facing severe criticism after opting to dismiss the Italian.
Earlier this month they had released a statement declaring unwavering support for Ranieri, but the 2-0 defeat against Swansea is thought to have seriously alarmed the club hierarchy and forced a swift rethink.
And with Leicester only a point off the Premier League’s relegation zone the club have acted in a desperate bid to avoid relegation to the Championship. The decision comes less than 24 hours after a creditable 2-1 defeat to Seville in the Champions League first leg.
Leicester lines up possible replacement
Former Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink is on Leicester City’s shortlist to replace Claudio Ranieri, according to reports.
The Italian was sacked by Leicester on Thursday evening just nine months after guiding the club to the Premier League title.
The 65-year-old was told the news on Thursday afternoon, less than 24 hours after the team’s 2-1 defeat to Sevilla in the Champions League.
Leicester, who defied odds of 5,000/1 with their title upset last year, are currently 17th in the Premier League and just a point above the relegation zone.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Hiddink is one of the candidates Leicester are considering to replace Ranieri.
The Dutchman has not managed a team since he left Chelsea at the end of last season, having taken temporary charge at Stamford Bridge following Jose Mourinho’s sacking in December 2015.
Former Leicester City boss Nigel Pearson is also being considered by the Foxes’ Thai owners.
Why Ranieri was sacked
The Daily Telegraph revealed earlier this month that Ranieri’s methods have been confusing and angering the players who last season lifted the title for some time.
They included the bizarre instruction to train on the morning of the FA Cup tie at Derby County, while he has also frequently changed tactics without warning less than two hours before kick-off.
In the 0-0 draw in Copenhagen in November, he angrily confronted a popular member of the backroom staff over a row about the players wearing the wrong football studs.
It is also understood that earlier this year when Leicester’s players held talks to force a return to the tactics of last season - essentially 4-4-2 with the plan to counter-attack - Ranieri waved them away and insisted there should be only one voice at the club.
His treatment of Demarai Gray has also been a constant source of irritation, with Ranieri dropping the talented winger in favour of £15million signing Ahmed Musa, who has horribly underachieved since joining from CSKA Moscow.
Sources have also claimed that the mood in the dressing room in recent months has been “totally flat”, with some players even accepting that relegation was inevitable unless Ranieri left the club.
It is a scenario which reeks of player power, similar to Jose Mourinho’s demise at Chelsea last season, yet there has been a growing sense that Leicester were only heading one way.
Leicester’s vice-chairman, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, said: “This has been the most difficult decision we have had to make in nearly seven years since King Power took ownership of Leicester City. But we are duty-bound to put the club’s long-term interests above all sense of personal sentiment, no matter how strong that might be.
“Claudio has brought outstanding qualities to his office. His skilful management, powers of motivation and measured approach have been reflective of the rich experience we always knew he would bring to Leicester City. His warmth, charm and charisma have helped transform perceptions of the club and develop its profile on a global scale. We will forever be grateful to him for what he has helped us to achieve.
“It was never our expectation that the extraordinary feats of last season should be replicated this season. Indeed, survival in the Premier League was our first and only target at the start of the campaign. But we are now faced with a fight to reach that objective and feel a change is necessary to maximise the opportunity presented by the final 13 games.”
Ranieri was rewarded with a new contract for his part in the title win, doubling his pay to around £3million a year, but the problems arguably started in pre-season.
Leicester’s tour of Los Angeles, to take part in the International Champions Cup, irked players and even Ranieri’s genial demeanour slipped at times during their stay.
The club’s recruitment – so highly revered in the past – has also been a disaster and signings such as Musa, Islam Slimani, Papy Mendy, Ron-Robert Zieler and Luis Hernandez (the latter has already left) have all struggled despite a spend of over £60million.
Steve Walsh, the man who helped discover the likes of N’Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy, departed to join Everton as director of football in a clear sign of friction at the top.
The January window was also excruciating, with £15million spent on Wilfried Ndidi and a deadline day capture of Molla Wague from Udinese – a player who had not made a competitive club appearance since November.
Ranieri is understood to have harboured serious concern over Leicester’s failure to recruit a top centre-half, with the club reluctant to pay £25million for Burnley’s Michael Keane in the summer. Without strengthening that position, Leicester have had no option but to stick with captain Wes Morgan and Robert Huth, who have a combined age of 65.
Now Leicester must mount a revival after only five league wins all season, with a home game against Liverpool on Monday night.
Last season’s champions then face Hull City a week on Saturday in a potentially crucial encounter at the King Power Stadium. For Ranieri, it is a case of Dilly Ding, Dilly Gone.
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