Leicester City Facing Relegation Battle Amid Managerial Turmoil
Leicester City find themselves in serious danger of dropping back to the Championship in the 2024/25 season, just a year after securing promotion. While expectations weren’t sky-high following their return to the top flight, few could have predicted the dramatic slump the Foxes are currently enduring.
With no fixture this weekend due to FA Cup commitments elsewhere, Leicester have a brief respite, but their battle for survival resumes when Premier League action returns. The Midlands club is in one of its worst spells in recent memory, and avoiding relegation appears to be an uphill struggle.
Ruud van Nistelrooy was brought in last November to steer the team clear of trouble, but after losing 11 of their last 12 league matches, fans are calling for his dismissal. Many now believe the club’s current crisis could have been avoided had owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha not made a costly decision in the past.
Leicester’s Managerial Changes Proving Costly
While survival is still mathematically possible, Leicester’s poor form and challenging fixture list make relegation highly likely. If they do go down, it will mark their second demotion in just three seasons.
Their previous relegation in 2022/23 followed a difficult campaign under Brendan Rodgers, who had been in charge for most of the season. After a run of five defeats in six matches, Leicester parted ways with Rodgers in April 2023 when they slipped into the drop zone.
At the time, Srivaddhanaprabha defended the decision, emphasizing the need for a change to protect the club’s Premier League status. In a statement via BBC Sport, he explained:
“We believed that continuity and stability were key to correcting our course, especially given our past success under Brendan. Unfortunately, the necessary improvements did not materialize, and with 10 games remaining, we had to take decisive action to safeguard our place in the Premier League.”
Was Sacking Brendan Rodgers a Major Mistake?
During his tenure, Rodgers led Leicester to FA Cup and Community Shield triumphs, yet despite a poor 2022/23 campaign, his dismissal may have been a major misstep. The club replaced him with Dean Smith for the remainder of the season, but Smith—while experienced—was unable to keep the team up.
Since then, Leicester have struggled to find stability, and the decision to part ways with Rodgers continues to haunt them. Meanwhile, Rodgers has since returned to Celtic, where he is once again enjoying success, while Leicester edge closer to yet another relegation.
