Leicester City has suffered eight losses in their last nine Premier League matches, pushing them into the relegation zone. Their recent 4-0 defeat to Everton might be one of their worst away performances in years.
Manager Ruud van Nistelrooy is already feeling the heat, with some fans unhappy about his choice to frequently leave Facundo Buonanotte on the bench. There have been whispers of a fallout between the two, and Caleb Okoli’s name has also been mentioned in these rumors.
However, when asked if Van Nistelrooy has lost control of the dressing room, journalist Rob Tanner clarified the situation. While there have been some intense exchanges, particularly after the loss to Fulham last month, it seems Van Nistelrooy still maintains the support and respect of his players.
“He’s got a bit of an aura around him and I remember people at Man United telling me this when I was trying to find out what sort of coach he was.
“They were saying very popular with the players and I think you can remember when they beat Leicester and Casemiro came running over to bench to celebrate with Ruud, you know there was a connection there, there was a mutual respect and I think Ruud’s tried to treat all the players as human beings first and footballers second at the moment.”
Rob Tanner reinforced the notion that the players are still committed to Van Nistelrooy, pointing out that they are enjoying his coaching style and tactics.
“It’s a shame the results have gone the way they have for Ruud because right now, when you talk to some of the people around the players, they’re enjoying it under Ruud.
“He’s authoritative and certainly he told them after the Fulham game a few home truths as you’d expect every manager to do, you want a manager to lead.”
There’s a lot more continuity around the football club with the Dutchman at the helm and hopefully that’ll translate to some positive results over the coming weeks.
It appears that the team is more on board with Van Nistelrooy’s approach to the game compared to Cooper’s, suggesting that recent poor performances are more about a dip in form rather than a rift with the coaching staff.
With Van Nistelrooy leading, there’s a greater sense of consistency at the club, and there’s hope this will lead to better results in the near future.
