On the 29th of November, Ruud van Nistelrooy was appointed as the new manager of Leicester City. The Foxes acted swiftly to replace Steve Cooper who, it has to be said, they acted almost equally as swiftly to sack, after just 12 league games in charge. Van Nistelrooy is 48 years old, which makes him around 50% older than Brighton boss, Fabian Hurzeler, and a full decade older than both Ipswich manager, Kieran McKenna, and Southampton number one, Russell Martin.
However, he is very inexperienced in managerial terms, with less than 100 games under his belt. He was a phenomenal striker for PSV, Manchester United and Real Madrid, and netted 35 goals in 70 games for the Netherlands, but many Leicester fans will be questioning the wisdom of appointing a man with no real knowledge of a relegation battle.
The Dutchman did superbly well as interim boss of Man United after Erik ten Hag was sacked, winning three and drawing one of the four games he took charge. United scored 11 goals in that spell and conceded just three. However, Van Nistelrooy had one huge advantage during his four-game stint that he will not enjoy with his new club: two of those games were against Leicester!
Steve Cooper Replaced
We are delighted to confirm the appointment of Ruud van Nistelrooy as our new First Team Manager 🦊
— Leicester City (@LCFC) November 29, 2024
Many will feel that Cooper was hard done by, and being sacked after just a short spell was undoubtedly at least a little harsh. Moreover, when Cooper was sacked, his charges were not in the bottom three, which, for a newly promoted club, is no mean feat with almost a third of the season gone. The day after he was appointed, Van Nistelrooy watched on from the stands as the Foxes were well beaten by Brentford. Leicester owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha sat alongside his new employee and both will have seen what a task the club faces as they went down 4-1 to the Bees.
Ahead of their home game against fellow strugglers West Ham, Leicester sit 16th in the Premier League table. However, three of the four teams behind them are just a point back, and so the standings could certainly change very quickly. Let’s take a look at what Van Nistelrooy has achieved in his managerial career so far and then consider whether or not he can keep Leicester in the top flight.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Career
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The former Man United striker retired as a player in 2012 not too far shy of his 36th birthday after a final and somewhat underwhelming spell with Malaga where he played just 32 games (and scored five goals). Before long he was working with PSV’s Under 17 team, steadily working his way through the coaching ranks until, by February 2016, he was the striking coach for them, plus the Under 19s and the reserves. He had also, alongside those roles, worked for the national team, as an assistant to Guus Hiddink at the 2014 World Cup.
He fulfilled a similar role for Ronald Koeman at Euro 2020, by which stage he had been the manager of PSV’s Under 19s for a couple of years, having replaced Mark van Bommel in June 2018. He then advanced his career further with the Eindhoven side, for whom he played 90 games and scored 77 goals early in his playing career, by taking charge of Jong PSV (essentially their reserve team) in 2021.
Despite unimpressive results, he again earned a promotion internally, this time getting the top job as boss of the first team in May 2022. He had one full season in charge of his former club, winning 33 of the 51 games he was in the dugout for and losing just eight times. His players racked up the goals, scoring 126 times, but they came second to Feyenoord, trailing Arne Slot’s men by seven points. Van Nistelrooy did, however, guide PSV to success in the KNVB Cup and the Dutch Super Cup.
United Call
Van Nistelrooy scored 150 goals for Man United and played more games for them than any other side so when they came calling he could not refuse. In July 2024, Ten Hag brought him in to assist but by then the manager was running on borrowed time and, by October, he was gone.
United underperformed badly during the few months the two Dutchmen linked up but naturally it is Ten Hag who shoulders the blame. When he left, Van Nistelrooy was made interim boss and he made no secret of the fact that he was keen to take the job on a full-time basis. His results were good, with the aforementioned caveat that the opposition was 50% Leicester, and also that no real judgement can be made after just four games.
Astonishing Response
“I’m proud to be able to get the opportunity” – Ruud van Nistelrooy đź’™
— Leicester City (@LCFC) December 2, 2024
Whilst the Red Devils hierarchy was unimpressed by his four-game stint in charge, Van Nistelrooy revealed that it had opened a lot of doors for him. When United appointed Portuguese manager Ruben Amorim from Sporting, Van Nistelrooy was surplus to requirements. He said that “it hurt I had to leave” but that “I also understand the new manager. I’m in football long enough and I’ve managed myself. I understand.”
However, when his services became available he himself remarked that he “was a little bit astonished” by the interest in hiring him. He remarked that “there were offers there and possibilities” and that “What happened after the games and the amount of interest, the options that all of a sudden were there for me” were amazing. We do not know what other offers were on the table but the one he opted for was Leicester. But can he keep the Foxes in the Premier League or will they suffer a second relegation in three seasons?
Will the Foxes Be Hunted Down?
At the time of writing the Foxes have their heads above water but that could all change by the time you read this. Southampton have just five points from 13 games but there are just two points between Ipswich in 19th and Everton in 15th so just a single win could make a big difference to the table.
Leicester’s new boss does not have any real experience at this end of the Premier League table and the bookies do not fancy his chances. The Foxes are 8/15 second favourites for relegation, with the three that came up, Leicester, Ipswich and the Saints all odds-on to go straight back down.
Ipswich, with their bright young manager, may confound the odds but sadly for Leicester, we do not think appointing Van Nistelrooy was particularly wise. Time will tell, but we think the Foxes may well be doomed come May – if not earlier.