Leicester City are set to confirm that Craig Shakespeare has been given the manager’s job for the remainder of the season. Claudio Ranieri’s former No2 was in put in charge in the wake of the Italian’s sacking and has convinced Leicester’s owners that he is the right man to steer the club to safety after overseeing back-to-back Premier League wins over Liverpool and Hull City.
Shakespeare is currently in Dubai with Leicester for their warm-weather training camp and it is understood that the 53-year-old has held talks with Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the chairman, and Aiyawatt, his son, who also travelled to the United Arab Emirates. Leicester’s owners are now prepared to hand over the manager’s reins for the rest of the campaign to Shakespeare.
Although the Premier League champions have sounded out a number of potential managers, including Roy Hodgson, in the wake of Ranieri’s sacking, the instant turnaround under Shakespeare has impressed everyone at the club. Shakespeare has the backing of the players, as well as the supporters, who sang his name during Saturday’s 3-1 win over Hull, and is highly regarded by Jon Rudkin, Leicester’s director of football.
His only objective between now and the end of the season will be to deliver Premier League survival, which is firmly within Leicester’s grasp. Two victories in the space of a week has lifted the club out of the bottom three and up to 15th in the table, transforming the mood at the King Power Stadium, where supporters chanted on Saturday: “We’ve got our Leicester back�.
Shakespeare’s next match is not until 14 March, when Leicester face Sevilla at home in arguably the biggest game in their 133-year history. Trailing 2-1 from the first leg of their Champions last-16 tie, Leicester know that a 1-0 win would be enough to secure a place in the quarter-finals of Europe’s premier club competition.
