Ruud van Nistelrooy to take over as Leicester City manager
Ruud van Nistelrooy is set to become Leicester City’s new manager, taking over from Steve Cooper, who was dismissed after a disappointing 157-day tenure.
Cooper’s final game in charge was a 2-1 Premier League defeat to Chelsea, leaving Leicester 16th on the table, just one point above the relegation zone.
Van Nistelrooy, 48, takes the reins just weeks after leaving his interim role at Manchester United, where he stepped in following Erik ten Hag’s dismissal.
Despite overseeing three wins and a draw, including two victories over Leicester in the Premier League and Carabao Cup, he was not offered a role in Ruben Amorim’s incoming backroom staff and opted to move on.
This marks Van Nistelrooy’s return to full-time management after his first stint at PSV Eindhoven in the 2022-23 season, where he won the Dutch Cup.
His immediate task at Leicester will be reviving a struggling squad that failed to gel under Cooper’s methods. While some senior players, like Jamie Vardy, supported Cooper, others in the dressing room were less receptive to his approach.
With Leicester’s next game at Brentford looming, caretaker Ben Dawson is expected to remain in charge as Van Nistelrooy begins the challenge of steering the Foxes away from danger.