Leicester fans left thoroughly underwhelmed by the appointment of Claude Puel… but they were with Claudio Ranieri too
Foxes faithful have every reason to be concerned about the style of football set to grace the King Power Stadium
WHEN Leicester sacked Craig Shakespeare it is safe to say Claude Puel was not the glamour name their supporters were crying out for to replace him.
Carlo Ancelotti, Sam Allardyce and Sean Dyche were all among the contenders to be given the task of hauling the 2015-16 champions away from the drop zone.
So it is easy to see why the appointment of the nice-but-dour Puel has left fans feeling suitably underwhelmed.
It is worth noting that Claudio Ranieri’s arrival at the King Power was met with a similar response and we all know how that turned out.
But it is hard to make much of a case for Puel being the man to bring a similar feel-good fact to the East Midlands.
After all, this is the guy who managed to get himself the boot from Southampton despite leading them to eighth in the Premier League and to a League Cup final – one which they should have won.
While Puel’s departure from the St Mary’s was greeted with shock around the rest of the football world, there were very few tears shed on the south coast.
The football Saints played under Puel, their brilliant Wembley run apart, was as dull as the Frenchman’s often-inaudible press conferences.
Billed as Arsene Wenger’s protege, Puel simply sucked the life out of the place and left the players feeling as uninspired as those who paid their hard-earned money to watch.
What Leicester need now is a manager with the ability to galvanise a confidence-drained dressing-room and to restore belief in the playing squad.
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To get out of trouble requires a boss who will get the stands rocking and bring a buzz of excitement to the training-ground.
On the evidence of his year at Saints, Puel possesses none of those traits and Leicester face a long, hard winter under his leadership.
His safety-first tactics may prove enough to grind out the required points to stay up.
But do not anticipate a return to the swashbuckling approach which swept the Foxes all the way to the title only two years ago.
And don’t expect to see Leicester at the top of the Match of the Day running order any time soon either.
