Why Leicester should bite the bullet with Ranieri

Should Ranieri stay or go? – skysports.com

“…the unprecedented success achieved in recent seasons has been based firmly on stability, togetherness and determination to overcome even the greatest of challenges.” – The conclusion of Leicester City’s official statement in support of manager Claudio Ranieri. Those words are not exactly untrue, but nor do they tell the whole story:

After keeping the club up, Nigel Pearson was sacked in the summer of 2015, partly for off-field reasons. The club dismissed a bolshie disciplinarian who had done a good job, replacing him with a gentleman who, off the field at least, is as dignified as he is charming. For the players who had grown tired of Pearson’s tough-talking, Ranieri represented a refreshing change and he led them to unprecedented glory. At another club, the Italian will surely have an impact for the same reasons, if not to the same extent.

However, right now he looks ill-equipped to fire his team up for a relegation battle. Naturally, the players must take a lot of the blame, because nine of the starting 11 that faced Manchester United on Sunday were Premier League champions. Based on performance levels, it is reasonable to deduce that something is not quite right in the dressing room. Ranieri’s calm, dignified approach is not getting the right reaction out of the group.

Meanwhile, head coaches at other clubs have made good starts, even if Crystal Palace are yet to progress under Sam Allardyce. Paul Clement and Marco Silva have already shaken things up successfully at Swansea and Hull respectively. They are playing with more ‘togetherness and determination’ having changed their manager than Leicester are by sticking with their own.

Nothing, not even three relegations, can take away from Ranieri the memories of what he achieved last season. Every single Leicester City fan will always be eternally grateful for everything he did last season. However, in order to avoid stagnation, there comes a time when action must be taken based on current results.

It would be a shame if Ranieri and Leicester were to part ways in this fashion. However, it would be an even greater shame if their wonderful journey were to end in relegation.