‘Leicester backed to appoint Gary O’Neil after Ruud van Nistelrooy sack’
Ruud van Nistelrooy looks unlikely to be in charge of Leicester City in the Championship next season, with Gary O’Neil tipped to take charge instead.
The Foxes have been sent crashing back down to the second tier after just a single campaign in the Premier League, currently sitting 19th in the table on 21 points, with three matches remaining.
Leicester fans already want to part ways with Van Nistelrooy, having only been appointed in December, but with four wins from 24 matches, he has done little to impress at the King Power Stadium.
With speculation only increasing over his future with the 2016 Premier League champions, Mick Brown told Football Insider that Sheffield Wednesday’s Danny Rohl is in contention for the Leicester job.
However, while discussing who should replace Van Nistelrooy as the Foxes drop back down to the Championship, former title-winner Robert Huth and Darren Bent came to an agreement on Gary O’Neil.
Ruud van Nistelrooy on the brink of Leicester City sacking
Speaking live on talkSPORT (8 May, 5:23pm), Huth said: “I’d like to see a young, British manager given a chance. Gary O’Neil is free at the moment, Russell Martin is free, but there is no one-way ticket to going back up.
Bent agreed, saying: “It’s a good point you make about Gary O’Neil. He did well at Wolves at the start, and I know the new manager has come in and done well, but I think that wouldn’t be a bad shout.
“Ruud [van Nistelrooy] just hasn’t worked out one bit, for whatever reason. Performances have been poor; they’ve struggled to score goals, which is ironic because he’s one of the greatest goal scorers we’ve seen.
“I think Gary O’Neil would be hungry, and he did well with Bournemouth as well. I think it would be a great signing.”
| Manager | Games | Won | Drawn | Lost | Win % |
| Ruud van Nistelrooy | 24 | 4 | 2 | 18 | 16.7 |
Leicester City to target promotion straight back to the Premier League
Football Insider verdict
It would seem unthinkable for Van Nistelrooy’s future to not be in question after the Foxes dropped back down to the Championship following such a toothless second half of the season.
A huge blow has already emerged at the King Power, with Jamie Vardy announcing his decision to leave Leicester at the end of the season, departing after 13 years at the club.
The club will, undoubtedly, be targeting moves for transfers to help fire them back to the Premier League, but it will need an experienced manager in charge to reach those achievements next season.
O’Neil, albeit he was let go by Wolves after a dismal run of games which left the club fighting relegation this season, has a positive track record from his time at the Vitality Stadium.
The 41-year-old was doing a brilliant job with Bournemouth before the cut-throat decision was made to replace him with Andoni Iraola, though that decision has been vindicated since.
It seems that Van Nistelrooy is quickly running out of time to save his job at the King Power, and whether Leicester fans would be happy with O’Neil as a replacement, he is a realistic option this summer.