Leicester City’s Premier League winning manager Claudio Ranieri ruled out suggestions that a revolt from the players led to his sacking, instead hinted that a member from the club’s board could have plotted his dismissal, express.co.uk reported.
The 65-year-old revealed that he had encountered difficulties during his side’s title-winning run too,
“Maybe it was someone behind me. I had a little problem the year before and we won the title. Maybe this year, when we lose, these people push a little more,” he said.
Last season, with Ranieri in charge, Leicester were offered 5,000-1 odds by the bookies at the start of the season to win the title. The Foxes romped to their first title in their 132-year history. Ranieri attained demi-god status then but his stock nose-dived after the team’s wretched form in the Premier League this season.
One of the conspiracy theories doing the rounds following the Italian’s exit pointed towards a possible meeting between the players and the owners. Even current manager Criag Shakespeare, who was an assistant during the Italian’s time at the King Power stadium, was marked out as a suspect.
“I don’t believe rumours [that] the players spoke to the Leicester owners about sacking me. I can’t believe the players killed me. No, no, no,” Ranieri said. “It wasn’t easy. I knew that the year after winning the title would be different. The players had to reset their minds – this wasn’t a team used to fighting at the top. We were a little team,” he added.
After Ranieri’s sacking, Leicester bounced back with four consecutive wins in the Premier League under Shakespeare, and even beat Sevilla to enter the last-eight stage of the Champions League.
Ranieri believes that Leicester turned a corner in the first leg in the tie, where they lost 1-2 to the Spanish side. A game that turned out to be his last at the club.
“I think the turning point was the Sevilla match. I saw the players in the second half fighting together, working together. I found out on the way home that I would be sacked. It was a shock for me and for a lot of other people,” Ranieri said.
However, despite the acrimonious end to his stint at Leicester, Ranieri said the club would remain close to his heart. “Leicester will be in my heart for all of my life because I won something in Europe, but never the title. Three times I was runner-up.”
Leicester play their next game against Atletico Madrid at Vicente Calderon in the Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday.
