The period of hysteria is done and dusted for Leicester City as the perception that nothing lasts forever has come to light yet again. Under the tutelage of Claudio Ranieri, the Foxes entered the 2015-16 campaign as relegation battlers but their tremendous willpower, outrageous commitment level and grit made them climb up the ladder slowly and they ended the league campaign by kissing the magnificent Premier League silverware in the merry month of May last year. And how times change!
In what was ought to be a title defence season, the King Power Stadium looks all dull and worried as their beloved team have had innumerable gruesome punches to deal with, and eventually, they have ventured onto the brink of succumbing to them. The Foxes are placed 15th in the league table and it doesn’t look good by any standard whatsoever. The hero of last season, Ranieri, was sacked lately, turning him into a zero and Craig Shakespeare and Mike Stowell are the joint caretaker managers of the club for the time being. But then, who should lead them next season?
A manager who is a household name in English soil, Roy Hodgson, is reportedly in line to be appointed as the next gaffer at the King Power Stadium. The former England manager, who had a disastrous spell with the national side, is currently without a manager’s post and is keen on making a comeback, with the Foxes being an appealing side to manage. Leicester City’s owner and Thai billionaire, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, is looking for a long-term successor to the throne left by Ranieri and Hodgson has the CV worth taking a note of without any shadow of a doubt.
The 69-year-old is a pretty experienced manager in the Premier League and had managed to save Fulham and West Bromwich Albion from falling into the clutches of the relegation zone. Hodgson, apart from the abovementioned two outfits, has managed Bristol City, Blackburn Rovers and Liverpool in the past and with the resources he would inherit at Leicester City, one should expect him to deliver much more than having the last laugh in relegation fistfight.
A lot would depend upon how he is persuaded and the manner in which Shakespeare concludes the ongoing campaign to determine as to whether Hodgson would be handed the charges in the summer or not, but it would be a safe bet from the Foxes if they decide to do so.
