Little or nothing, or rather, remains of that Leicester that won the most unlikely Premier League in history in 2015-16, with Ranieri on the bench and an eleven that was recited almost by heart: Schmeichel; Simpson, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, Kanté, Drinkwater, Albrighton; Okazaki and Vardy.
The ‘foxes’, recently promoted to Premier and with financial problems, seek to be reborn from their ashes. They did not succeed with the dismissed Steve Cooper, replacement for Enzo Maresca, now at Chelsea, and have decided to bet on an illustrious like Ruud van Nistelrooy (Oss, 1976).
The former Real Madrid player and now coach sits down with MARCA and assesses his future on the bench and reviews current events in the world of football
The former PSV, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Hamburg and Málaga attacker – he scored 95 goals in the 150 Premier games he played – is very excited about the Foxes project. Furthermore, it comes with perfect timing: the Dutchman came out reinforced and convinced of his brief stint as interim coach of the ‘red devils’.
He directed four games between the departure of Ten Hag and the arrival of Amorim and finished undefeated: three wins, one draw, 11 goals for and three against. Curiously, two of those wins were against Leicester: 5-2 in the League Cup and 3-0 in the Premier.
Van Nistelrooy’s results with United
Manchester United 5-2 Leicester (League Cup)
Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea (Premier)
Manchester United 2-0 PAOK (Europa League)
Manchester United 3-0 Leicester (Premier)
‘Van the Man’ ended his work at Old Trafford with a very good taste in his mouth, first as Ten Hag’s assistant and then as head coach. Not only for the results. He feels that his message resonated and that he managed to unite the club, players and fans.
Van Nistelrooy’s farewell to Manchester United.Instagram.
“I have coached four games, all at home, obtaining good results and scoring good goals. I have enjoyed every second. It has been a short period, but incredible,” he acknowledged before his goodbye.
I have enjoyed every second. It has been a short period, but incredible
Ruud van Nistelrooy
He is also supported by his debut as an elite coach at PSV in 2022-23. The former Real Madrid player won the Cup and Super Cup and qualified the Eindhoven team for the Champions League. However, he preferred to step aside as he did not feel the Board’s 100% support.
Van Nistelrooy poses, in his farewell to PSV, with the Dutch Cup. Instagram
Now, however, he understands that it is his time. He was interested in Hamburg and Burnley, but the Leicester project is attractive to him. He likes it. And it’s not easy for them: the ‘foxes’ are sixteenth in the Premier, one point and two places above relegation.
The calendar and the imminent Christmas ‘binge’ don’t help either. Brentford, West Ham, Brighton, Newcastle and Wolverhampton await him before visiting Liverpool (Boxing Day), hosting Manchester City (December 29) and playing away against Aston Villa (January 4). It doesn’t scare him. They nickname him ‘Van the Man’ for a reason.
