Leicester City Football Club have announced that Claudio Ranieri is the new first-team manager following the dismissal of Nigel Pearson earlier in the summer.
The Foxes somehow stayed in the Premier League last year following their great escape, but due to conflicts off the field, Pearson lost his job after the campaign ended.
The 63-year-old Italian has agreed a three-year deal at the King Power Stadium and will enjoy his second stint as a Premier League manager, following his time in London with Chelsea.
Vice Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha and Director of Football Jon Rudkin flew Ranieri out to the club’s pre-season training camp in Austria on Monday, where he was introduced to the squad and began working with the first-team immediately.
Srivaddhanaprabha said: “It is my great pleasure to welcome Claudio Ranieri – a man of remarkable experience and knowledge that will lead us into the next phase of our long-term plan for Leicester City.
“His achievements in the game, his knowledge of English football and his record of successfully coaching some of the world’s finest players made him the outstanding candidate for the job and his ambitions for the future reflect our own.
“To have attracted one of the world’s elite managers speaks volumes both for the progress Leicester City has made in recent years and for the potential that remains for the Club’s long-term development.”
Ranieri said: “I’m so glad to be here in a Club with such a great tradition as Leicester City. I have worked at many great clubs, in many top leagues, but since I left Chelsea I have dreamt of another chance to work in the best league in the world again.
“I wish to thank the owner, his son and all the executives of the Club for the opportunity they are giving me. Now I’ve only one way for returning their trust: squeeze all my energies to getting the best results for the team.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt