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Dean Smith and Enzo Maresca under consideration as Leicester assess manager options​

While Smith could not prevent Leicester's relegation he has some support from within the boardroom

ByJohn Percy and Mike McGrath5 June 2023 • 7:33pm

Leicester City have held talks with Dean Smith as they assess their options over appointing a new manager.

Smith had a summit meeting with chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha and Jon Rudkin, the director of football, to discuss Leicester’s relegation to the Championship and the club’s plans for the future.

While the former Aston Villa head coach was unable to prevent Leicester from dropping out of the Premier League, he has some support within the boardroom after two wins and three draws from his eight matches in charge.

Smith was asked for his views on how Leicester can mount a promotion challenge next season and it is understood talks were positive.

A week after relegation was confirmed, Leicester are now ready to initiate talks with candidates this week as they move to appoint the next permanent manager.

Aside from Smith, other contenders will be considered and Manchester City’s first-team coach Enzo Maresca has emerged as a potential target.

Maresca has earned a reputation at City as the next member of Pep Guardiola’s backroom staff who could become a No. 1 following Mikel Arteta’s move to Arsenal. Southampton wanted him earlier this year but he has been concentrating on City.

Leicester will have to wait for Maresca, 43, as he is a key part of City’s attempt to win the European Treble, with the final leg on Saturday in the Champions League final against Inter Milan.

Scott Parker, who has won Championship promotion with Fulham and Bournemouth, is also on Leicester’s radar along with Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna.

Steven Gerrard, the former Rangers and Villa manager, is also in the frame after holding talks with Leicester in April before Smith’s appointment.

On Monday night, Leicester confirmed the departures of Youri Tielemans, Caglar Soyuncu, Ayoze Perez, Tete, Ryan Bertrand, Nampalys Mendy and Daniel Amartey.

The seven players will be out of contract later this month, but negotiations are ongoing over a possible deal for Northern Ireland international Jonny Evans.

Leicester also have decisions to make on the likely transfer fees for James Maddison and Harvey Barnes, who will be sold this summer.

Maddison is a target for Tottenham and Newcastle, while Barnes is admired by Tottenham, Aston Villa and Newcastle.
 
Quite a few names in here. Worrying ones are Gerrard and Smith.

No mention at all of Potter.

If it's accurate, it looks like there's still not a clear strategy we're following.

Former West Brom player Enzo Maresca is a curious inclusion here. As a first team manager his experience is exactly 13 league games and one cup tie with Parma in 2021. They’d just been relegated from Serie A. He was sacked in November after a 1-1 draw at home to Cosenza with a league record of 4 wins and 5 draws. Parma finished the season in the bottom half.

Exciting.
 
Exactly the kind of nonsense names I expect from this board.

****ing clueless
 
Enzo Maresca is an interesting one for me. A few clubs now starting to try and tap into that Pep Guardiola experience. Bit of a gamble but forward thinking. Worked alright for Arsenal and Burnley so far...
 
Of the five man shortlist, the only one that doesn't make me want to chew my own foot off is McKenna.
Doesn’t actually say it’s a shortlist does it? But John Percy writing it usually means it’s pretty accurate (I think)
 
Maresca & the golden glow of St Pep of Guardiola ?

Oh yes. I can just imagine another scintillating season of watching whatever we have left of the squad, plus the untried kids & bargain basement carthorses we'll inevitably end up using to fill the gaps trying to play out from the back & getting repeatedly arse raped by shithousing championship teams week after week.

I get the impression that if nobody else was available at Man City Rudkin would recommend their kit man for the job. Or the bloke from their ticket office. Or anyone who drives past the Etihad on their way to work.

I'm pretty sanguine about it now. I expected precisely nobody on any list of candidates to be in any way an exciting prospect & thats exactly what we've got.

2 years ago we'd have had top quality candidates banging the door down looking for the job. Today we've got failures, untried assistants looking for a first big gig & hail mary punts. Thats how far & fast the collapse has been.

Players though. The departure list is exactly as expected but still, Tielemans & Soyuncu. 70m quids worth of sales pissed away for nowt. That fact alone should be enough to tell anyone that the top end of the club needs to be hacked off with a ****ing machete & replaced immediately. Utterly ****ing shambolic on every level. In any other business that kind of financial asset management incompetence would result in P45s all round. ****ing disgrace.

I am actually sad to see Mendy go. Criminally underused. Inexplicably when Wilf was so sub standard for so long. Perfect type for the championship too I'd say. I imagine he's happy to see the back of us. Can't blame him.
 
Exactly how underwhelming can this become? Shoot me now.
 
Ditto. A fave of mine for years. I love his understated, workman approach. A water carrier Ranieri called him. I can see that description. Just keeps it ticking over, recycling the ball. Always making himself available. I guess that's where he is again; available, waiting.
The way he’s been treated is nothing short of disgusting
He didn’t have a squad number at the beginning of the season.
Sure, he made mistakes, but who the **** didn’t last season
 

Dean Smith and Enzo Maresca under consideration as Leicester assess manager options​

While Smith could not prevent Leicester's relegation he has some support from within the boardroom

ByJohn Percy and Mike McGrath5 June 2023 • 7:33pm

Leicester City have held talks with Dean Smith as they assess their options over appointing a new manager.

Smith had a summit meeting with chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha and Jon Rudkin, the director of football, to discuss Leicester’s relegation to the Championship and the club’s plans for the future.

While the former Aston Villa head coach was unable to prevent Leicester from dropping out of the Premier League, he has some support within the boardroom after two wins and three draws from his eight matches in charge.

Smith was asked for his views on how Leicester can mount a promotion challenge next season and it is understood talks were positive.

A week after relegation was confirmed, Leicester are now ready to initiate talks with candidates this week as they move to appoint the next permanent manager.

Aside from Smith, other contenders will be considered and Manchester City’s first-team coach Enzo Maresca has emerged as a potential target.

Maresca has earned a reputation at City as the next member of Pep Guardiola’s backroom staff who could become a No. 1 following Mikel Arteta’s move to Arsenal. Southampton wanted him earlier this year but he has been concentrating on City.

Leicester will have to wait for Maresca, 43, as he is a key part of City’s attempt to win the European Treble, with the final leg on Saturday in the Champions League final against Inter Milan.

Scott Parker, who has won Championship promotion with Fulham and Bournemouth, is also on Leicester’s radar along with Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna.

Steven Gerrard, the former Rangers and Villa manager, is also in the frame after holding talks with Leicester in April before Smith’s appointment.

On Monday night, Leicester confirmed the departures of Youri Tielemans, Caglar Soyuncu, Ayoze Perez, Tete, Ryan Bertrand, Nampalys Mendy and Daniel Amartey.

The seven players will be out of contract later this month, but negotiations are ongoing over a possible deal for Northern Ireland international Jonny Evans.

Leicester also have decisions to make on the likely transfer fees for James Maddison and Harvey Barnes, who will be sold this summer.

Maddison is a target for Tottenham and Newcastle, while Barnes is admired by Tottenham, Aston Villa and Newcastle.
BN,

Not sure how accurate the two journos have been in the past? if they are normally on the money that list is shocking! Hopefully it is just names that normally do the rounds and are linked to the majority of jobs once they become vacant.

Surely our chairman is looking closer to home i.e his current board members who have not exactly exonerated themselves this year, and is considering redundancy for a few. If he is taking advice from them then ...... it beggars belief.

Fingers crossed we appoint a new director of football PDQ and then get after appointing a new manager, one thing is certain, we can dither and must get this right in order to sign new players. I just cannot see why Potter would entertain us just now we will are going to have to look at championship and league one IMO.
 
just names that normally do the rounds and are linked to the majority of jobs once they become vacant.
That's my take. I wouldn't say lazy journalism but certainly 1+1 journalism. I'd imagine that suits both club and genuine prospects.
 
BN,

Not sure how accurate the two journos have been in the past?

The Telegraph sports team are very reliable on us.

The information has either come direct from someone senior at City (Rudkin or Whelan) or via agents of managers.

Percy wouldn't just put his name to floated names by agents so I assume he's got evidence of City contacting agents asking about their clients.

It's most likely to be Smith from that article but the absence of Potter from the list suggests that it's game playing from the club rather than a genuine list.
 
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