I was not surprised that Craig Shakespeare’s tenure as permanent Leicester boss was not a long one. For me, he was never a long-term appointment. Claudio Ranieri’s former assistant just did not strike me as a Premier League boss.
Leicester have now found a replacement for Shakespeare in former Southampton boss Claude Puel, who was appointed on Wednesday on a three-year deal.
Mixed opinions on the appointment
When Southampton appointed Puel in the summer of 2016, I thought his appointment could have gone either way. In the end, the French did a decent job on the south coast, as the Saints finished eighth in the Premier League table and made it to the League Cup final.
I did not watch Southampton week-in and week-out last season under Puel. However, those that did were highly critical of the Frenchman’s style of play, especially towards the end of the season when they struggled to score goals at St Mary’s.
No doubt, the criticism of the Southampton fans that has influenced some of Leicester’s fans opinions on Puel. His appointment has certainly not been greeted with universal approval by the Foxes fans that is for sure.
Former Leicester striker and BBC presenter Gary Lineker has voiced his doubts over his appointment. However, this is the same Gary Lineker who criticised the appointment of title-winning boss Claudio Ranieri. Gary does have a history of putting his foot in it, though.
Pragmatic rather exciting
Claude Puel is definitely a pragmatism and from the outside looking in does not look like a ‘sexy’ appointment as some in the media have put it. The 56-year-old’s style has done him no harm throughout his managerial career, though.
A particular highlight of his career so far was guiding Lyon to the semi-final of the Champions League back in 2010. The Frenchman’s style could well suit the way Leicester play and the players at his disposal.
During their Premier League title-winning year, the Foxes played in a very counter-attacking style under Ranieri. The Foxes never set out to dominate possession or play particularly beautiful football.
However, the Midlands side played effective football that got the best out of the pace of winger Riyad Mahrez and striker Jamie Vardy. The tactic of hitting teams on the break worked repeatedly for the Foxes and helped them to one of the greatest achievements in the history of English football.
Teams knew what Leicester were going to do. However, it was hard to stop, which is a sign of a very good team. Puel may just be able to get the team playing once again in a similar style, which did not seem to bother the Leicester fans, as they were winning games.
Winning games is the most important thing for a Premier League team. Puel may be a defensively minded boss, but he has experience and I cannot see the Foxes suffering relegation with him as head coach.
It will be interesting to see how the supporters receive Puel at the weekend. No doubt, they will give the Frenchman some time to settle, but he does not hit the ground running then question marks will soon arise over his style of football.
First game against managerless Everton
Puel’s first game as Foxes boss will be against Everton on Sunday at the King Power Stadium, a game that the home side are odds of 11/10 to win.
Everton heads into the clash on the back of a 2-1 defeat at Chelsea in the League Cup on Wednesday night. The game at Stamford Bridge was interim boss David Unsworth’s first in charge of the team. The Toffees produced a good second half performance that suggests that their results may just pick up in the near future.
This game is unlikely to be as easy with Unsworth in charge of Everton as if Ronald Koeman were still in the Everton dugout.
I have to say when I first heard that Leicester had appointed Puel I thought it might be a mistake. However, reading back over his managerial stats and thinking about what brought Leicester success this may just be a shrewd move by the Foxes hierarchy.
Is Claude Puel the right boss for Leicester?
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