LEICESTER are considering a swoop for Ruud van Nistelrooy to replace Chelsea-bound Enzo Maresca as boss, according to reports.
The Foxes won the Championship with 97 points last season under former Manchester City assistant Maresca.
They are now looking for a new manager, with Maresca, 44, having agreed a five-year deal to replace Mauricio Pochettino at Stamford Bridge.
And, according to Belgian reporter Sacha Tavolieri, Van Nistelrooy is under serious consideration by Foxes chiefs.
The Manchester United legend, 47, began his coaching career as an assistant to Guus Hiddink with the Dutch national team in 2014.
He later coached PSV Eindhoven’s Under-19s, before eventually landing their first team gig in 2022.
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During his one year in charge, Van Nistelrooy won the KNVB Cup with PSV.
The former striker went on to resign with one game to spare in the Eredivisie season, with his side second in the table.
At the time it was claimed by ESPN that Van Nistelrooy had left his post amid a “player revolt” over his coaching and tactics.
The Dutchman primarily deployed a 4-3-3 formation during his time at PSV, although occasionally dabbled with a 4-4-2.
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His side set up to retain possession of the ball, playing a patient, highly structured style.
Despite their Championship title success, many Leicester fans have not been particularly sad to see Maresca go.
The former City coach also set his side up to play a patient, possession-based style – at odds with the direct football many at the King Power have favoured over the last decade.
Maresca has been accused of having “no Plan B” by sections of the Foxes faithful, while his side’s football was met by groans at times at the King Power.
While supporters were not always convinced, Maresca did achieve great buy in from his players.
‘HE’S INCREDIBLE’
Midfielder Harry Winks, who played under Pochettino, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte at Tottenham, even made a bold claim about Maresca.
Winks, 28, told Sky Sports: “He’s by far the best manager I’ve worked for. He’s incredible.
“Everybody will say he’s going right to the top in terms of managerial stature. He’s got everything. He’s a great man manager.
“He’s tactically incredible in some of the decisions that he tells us to do before the game and how he views the match is something I’ve never experienced before in football.”
Why Leicester fans WON’T miss Maresca
By Graeme Bryce
IT IS fair to say most Leicester fans were not exactly pleading with Maresca to stay.
OK, they were not queueing up and offering to drive him to Stamford Bridge.
But there will not be too many tears shed or much wailing at the King Power either.
The fans’ attitude to losing their incredibly successful boss could be summed up in a word: ‘Meh’.
Maresca failed to win over the paying public who never really took to his patient, possession-based style of football.
Having been brought up — some would say spoiled — by the swashbuckling title winners of 2016, with Jamie Vardy spearheading manager Claudio Ranieri’s shock champions, Maresca never really got off the ground at the King Power.
So it will be interesting to see what Chelsea’s notoriously impatient fans make of Maresca’s ‘death by a thousand cuts’ style of play.
It was not long before some of the old-school Leicester fans started moaning that Maresca’s patient, play-out-from-the-back style was becoming too boring to watch.
During a 3-1 win over Swansea which left them ten points clear at the top, there were moans and groans coming from the stands amid cries of, ‘Get the ball forward’.
Fans accused him of stubbornly sticking to his Plan A — even when it was not working — and claimed he was way too slow to make substitutions.
But one thing Blues fans can look forward to is his man-management and his attention to detail.
And the Foxes players also adored their manager.
Back in March, Van Nistelrooy underlined his desire to one day work in the Premier League.
He said: “I have had offers from various clubs, also in my own country, but I would love to work in England or in Spain.
“I want to coach in a league where I have played, because in those countries I speak the language fluently. In my opinion, I have gained plenty of experience. I have gone through the ranks.”
On what he brings to the table, the decorated former star continued: “I did the younger youth teams at PSV Eindhoven, I was coach of the under-21s and subsequently became manager of the first team.
“I have managed a lot of different players. I helped young talented players develop, let them grow, like (Cody) Gakpo, (Noni) Madueke, (Johan) Bakayoko and Xavi Simons. I was able to support them in their development.
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“It matters to me that it is a well organised club. I still want to work with young players, but ideally with a mixture of experienced professionals.
“I want to help them improve and bring a winning mentality. The latter is the most important thing. With my style of football.”
Meet Pep Guardiola disciple Enzo Maresca
ENZO MARESCA is considered among the most exciting young coaches on the planet.
Born in Italy in 1980, he managed to guide Leicester to the Championship title in his first season as Foxes boss.
His management career started at Italian minnows Ascoli before he was snapped up by Man City in 2020 to manage their Elite Development Squad.
He guided the youth team to the Premier League 2 title in his one season working for the Citizens – with Cole Palmer in the side.
His first senior job was with Parma but he was sacked after just a few months after failing to impress.
Despite the team playing in Serie B and Maresca having an impressive squad he was unable to get them on course for promotion.
He returned to Man City and worked as one of Pep Guardiola’s assistants for the 2022/23 season as they won the Treble.
He took over relegated Leicester last summer and made an immediate impact, with the Foxes winning the Championship title.
Maresca showed his dedication to the job by living at the training ground for the first two months after his appointment.
He’s considered something of a Pep disciple and has said: “For a coach, it’s important to have the mentality of a chess player.”
During his playing career he played under Carlo Ancelotti and Marcello Lippi – and alongside ex-Brighton boss Roberto de Zerbi.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
