So, what happens next?

[Brown Nose]

We don't go about our business quietly at Leicester City do we?

Drama, disaster, promotion, relegation, titles, administration, rich, poor . . and so on.

We are very fortunate to be on this roller coaster, despite the tragic events of last weekend. There are a lot of clubs that just exist year after year. The next dramatic moment we experience will be all the more emotive for what happened last Saturday evening.

So, as we begin to come to terms with a future without our owner and leader, what's going to happen next?

The main thing will be what happens with the ownership. We can assume that things won't change much, but there are a lot of assumptions there. Who knows who inherits what Vichai has left behind? We know that Top is tied into the club but, when the dust settles, will he have other more pressing business priorities on the other side of the world? What if the rest of his family don't want to do Leicester City any more? Who could blame them?

We were about to send the diggers into Seagrave to build our sensational new £120m training facility. We were also about to unveil our plans to massively renovate the stadium at a cost at least as much as this. Will this ever happen now? Or will they become more of those 'plans' that the club has had (Beaumont Leys, Bede Island) that never go beyond the dream stage?

We have a manager that was hanging onto his role by his fingertips. A squad that seemed pretty disjointed and unhappy at times. And a fan base that had gone very quiet at home games over the last year or so.

Will the loss of Vichai inspire the manager, players and fans to come together again and become that fearsome unit that we know can deliver extraordinary things? I do hope so. But when life settles down again in a few weeks time, will anything tangible really have changed there?

I think that we're at another one of those really big moments in our history that we'll look back upon in one of two ways. Either the end or an era or the start of one.

 

[pork pie fox]

I had been asking myself a lot of those questions over the past day or so. It seems a strange feeling to think about these things, but they are real questions and, at some point, need to be thought about.

Am I naive in thinking that, despite the tragedy of last week, we still have a vice-chairman, chief executive and director of football in place and, if we are a well run club, the plans should already be in place for some of the things you mention?

I guess only time will tell, but one thing is for sure, we are a markedly different club and in a whole different position to when Vichai bought us.

 

[Volpone]

I think we are in safe hands with Top. I am convinced he will want to honour his father's memory in the best way he can which is by ensuring the continued progress and development of LCFC.

I understand he is very 'hands on' and more involved in the day to day activities than his late father.

We are thankful he was not also on board the ill-fated helicopter. That would have been unimaginable.

 

[Mike - True Blue Tinter]

For Top and his family, it is possible that they may want to build and develop even more, to develop a club totally integrated into a diverse community, with facilities available for many Leicester sports and community teams, that will truly be a legacy of Vichai's vision.

And all because we play in the same Royal Blue as the King Power branding!

I suspect that Top was the football fan and pointed his dad in our direction.

 

[TornadoShaunUK]

This is the burning question. Top has already said he wants to continue Vichai's work but it's not just about the football club, even though I suspect that's what he was talking with regards to. You're looking at King Power, Leuven, the Polo team, the Horses and whatever plans Vichai was making that haven't yet come to pass. Of course it's not all about one man or two men and never has been and I'm sure Top will be more thankful than ever that his father has compiled some great teams of people to work for them over the years..

 

[Robin127]

According to this he became a fan after going to the League Cup Final in 1997.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/46052475

 

[ThaiSweetChilli]

For Top and his family, it is possible that they may want to build and develop even more, to develop a club totally integrated into a diverse community, with facilities available for many Leicester sports and community teams, that will truly be a legacy of Vichai's vision.

And all because we play in the same Royal Blue as the King Power branding!

I suspect that Top was the football fan and pointed his dad in our direction.

Actually this was the other way round.

Vichai had been a fan of Chelsea FC for a number of years. He was a box owner and enjoyed watching them play.

He wanted to do their shirt sponsorship for King Power but they refused. There was also a few disagreements and they basically treated him poorly.

Because of this disrespect and his love for football, it was Vichai who searched far and wide for a football club project, not for money but for the love of the sport itself.

When he sat down to discuss shirt sponsorship with LCFC (that was all it was meant to be at the time) he asked the question to Milan Mandaric whether he wanted to sell. Mandaric actually did want to sell and negotiations started. Then he purchased the club.

Top wasn't so sure and it was Khun Vichai who moved forward regardless as he was a fan of the sport.

Ironically when we won the league, Chelsea gave that beautiful guard of honour at Stamford Bridge. No doubt a very special day for Khun Vichai in more ways than one.

 

[Mike - True Blue Tinter]

I am sure in hindsight Chelsea would rather have brought Vichai on board than some dodgy Russian oligarch!

 

[ThaiSweetChilli]

I'm hopeful Top would want to carry on the vision of his father. He's clearly made that evident by his recent statement to the press.

Though you never can tell when the dust settles. It seems everyone is involved with the family business but specifically how much we aren't sure. Will we see another member be in charge? I trust Top but not so aware of the other siblings. With Southampton, Nicola Cortese was essentially running that football club even after Markus Liebherr(sp?) died. So maybe Top will bring in someone like him?

I do wonder what will happen with the DoF, other directors and manager. Were they all Vichai's choices and recommendations? I remember reading that Top took the first round of interviews when Ranieri was appointed and then sent Claudio to meet for the final stage with Khun Vichai. Has that changed? Is Rudkin Top's choice? Whelan? Puel? We might have a complete clear out. Then again nothing could change. So many questions but we'll just have to wait and see.

Maybe they wish to end it here and if they do then fair play. If they choose to sell, who would buy us? Im really not sure if we can get close to this family to be honest. I'd prefer a fan buy out. But will that be good enough?

If they don't want to sell then I suspect we will have a very good few years ahead of us. This burning desire to honour Khun Vichai and keep up his vision will, in my opinion, result in hunger and more determination. I think it's going to help move us forward. There's that extra impetus to keep us in the league and thriving. As an investment, we have been hugely profitable. We have spread the King Power brand globally and really ensured it is a household brand name. I'm sure that would continue. Not to mention the fact that if sold this club could be worth close to £350/400 million. J hope they believe in the city of Leicester. Our city is getting bigger and better as are the surround areas. Transport links are improving too. Hopefully they believe in Leicester and keep moving forward.

We've been in the PL for our fifth consecutive season. I for one do not want to go down anytime soon. I love the Premier League. I want be in this league for decades to come. Be a team like Everton or Spurs who have really cemented themselves here. I love being world-renown for the greatest ever sporting miracle.

Khun Vichai's passing hasn't dampened the miracle of 15-16. For me it's become even more untouchable.

This is the start of a new era I believe.

 

[SilverFox]

What’s next?

The same thing we do every night Pinky. Try to take over the world.

 

[Miles Away]

With no real fear of relegation and with the club having a very real reason for needing stability I think it’s unlikely much of anything changes until the summer.

I would hope Top, assuming he takes on his dads responsibilities, at least replaces himself with someone to pick up those functions. It could be a general “promotion” for a number of people but I think it’s important to bring in someone experienced in a sr. Leadership position.

The manager now has real time to implement what he wants and prove his doubters wrong as it’s extremely unlikely a change is made there.

Can’t see Top selling up to be honest. Though I wouldn’t blame him for a second if he did. Not sure we’d be the most intriguing of purchases either though. The club is probably more expensive now than it will ever be. You’d be better positioned going in for a Villa, Sunderland, or Portsmouth who you can get cheap and build. Just like Vichai did with us.

 

[Blue Maniac]

With no real fear of relegation and with the club having a very real reason for needing stability I think it’s unlikely much of anything changes until the summer.

I would hope Top, assuming he takes on his dads responsibilities, at least replaces himself with someone to pick up those functions. It could be a general “promotion” for a number of people but I think it’s important to bring in someone experienced in a sr. Leadership position.

The manager now has real time to implement what he wants and prove his doubters wrong as it’s extremely unlikely a change is made there.

Can’t see Top selling up to be honest. Though I wouldn’t blame him for a second if he did. Not sure we’d be the most intriguing of purchases either though. The club is probably more expensive now than it will ever be. You’d be better positioned going in for a Villa, Sunderland, or Portsmouth who you can get cheap and build. Just like Vichai did with us.

Villa were just taken over. Wasn’t there a very recent story about them losing millions every month? And I don’t know any numbers but wouldn’t be surprised to learn Sunderland have a wage bill too big for League One.

 

[Miles Away]

Villa were just taken over. Wasn’t there a very recent story about them losing millions every month? And I don’t know any numbers but wouldn’t be surprised to learn Sunderland have a wage bill too big for League One.

If you’ve deep pockets, that’s fixable.

 

[Blue Maniac]

If you’ve deep pockets, that’s fixable.

Most likely yeah. Portsmouth would probably be a more attractive option though.

 

[Graz]

Hopefully Top stays and continues to build on his father's legacy - and it sounds like that is his intention, although of course it's extremely early days.

I was under the impression that Top was more involved in the running of the club these days anyway.

In reality though, this is too big a question for any of us to possibly answer, because there's so many more factors at play. We aren't their only business - the King Power business you'd imagine is their main priority, so it depends what the set up is there. You'd imagine as a large company they would have plans in place already in case of such an eventuality, but what those plans are could impact on us. Then they have their other sporting endeavours too.

But I hope there is no real change for us, and that Top continues in his father's footsteps as far as we are concerned.

As MA said above, you'd imagine there won't be any short term changes for the timebeing - it's just about providing stability. Not just in terms of ownership and their priorities potentially lying elsewhere, but for the wellbeing of the staff and players etc. This could be a tough season depending on how everyone copes mentally with the tragic events, so it's all about just clubbing together now and staying stable.

 

[Brown Nose]

I'd like to think that I'm big enough to not want to post in the Puel Out thread again this season. It will be important to have continuity for the next few months. I think that the players will be okay too. They've got huge support and goodwill on their side.

My worry is for Top. Imagine being him. For whatever reason, he wasn't on that helicopter and that will haunt him for ever probably. He's lost his Dad in a traumatic way and he will feel that if he'd been there, maybe it could have been different. Grief like that is deep and complex and never ending.

And he's now a young man with massive responsibilities. It's too much and he needs help. Genuinely, getting someone like Steve Walsh (our old assistant manager, not the player) back involved in some capacity might be a smart move. Something like that anyway.

 

[City Fan]

I'd like to think that I'm big enough to not want to post in the Puel Out thread again this season. It will be important to have continuity for the next few months. I think that the players will be okay too.

It’s closed so you’d have difficulty!

There’s no way Puel will be sacked this season IMO.

 

[Lako42]

I've been saying that we should get Walsh back, however, there is no chance in hell that we'll get rid of Rudkin and I can't imagine SW wanting less than DOF

 

[Mike - True Blue Tinter]

So what is the story with Rudkin?

Promoted from an academy coach?

Now appears to be teflon coated and immovable, whether he makes good or bad decisions as DOF?

 

[homer]

More good stuff from Rob Dorsett

https://www.skysports.com/football/...left-by-vichai-srivaddhanaprabha-at-leicester