Leicester City Part Ways with Former Man United Star Ruud van Nistelrooy
By Sholeye Ayodele, Lagos
Leicester City have officially announced that Ruud van Nistelrooy has left the King Power Stadium by mutual consent. The former Dutch striker had joined the Foxes from Manchester United midway through last season.
Van Nistelrooy had initially returned to Manchester United last summer, becoming part of Erik ten Hag’s coaching staff as INEOS began restructuring the technical team at Old Trafford. At the time, United had conducted a full end-of-season review after a disappointing campaign, which initially led to plans to dismiss Ten Hag. The club explored alternative managerial options, including Ruben Amorim, but eventually reversed their decision and opted to retain Ten Hag, extending his contract by one year.
As part of that decision, Van Nistelrooy was brought in to support Ten Hag, with hopes that his presence would inject new energy and tactical innovation into United’s training sessions. However, United’s poor form continued into the new season, and by the end of October, INEOS reached the end of their patience. This time, they followed through with their decision and sacked Ten Hag.
Van Nistelrooy was appointed interim manager while the club searched for a permanent replacement. Despite some internal reservations—particularly from technical director Jason Wilcox—Manchester United settled on Ruben Amorim, who arrived from Sporting CP in November, bringing his own coaching staff.
During his brief interim spell, Van Nistelrooy led United to three wins and one draw in four matches, including two victories over Leicester—one in the Premier League and another in the Carabao Cup.
However, Amorim’s appointment meant Van Nistelrooy no longer had a place on the staff, and both parties agreed to part ways. Shortly afterward, Leicester City sacked Steve Cooper and brought in Van Nistelrooy in a last-ditch effort to avoid relegation, believing his leadership could turn their season around.
Unfortunately, the decision proved disastrous. Under Van Nistelrooy, Leicester became the first team in Premier League history to go nine consecutive games without scoring. The Foxes managed just five wins in 27 matches and were relegated in April with five games remaining, finishing the season 10 points from safety.
Amid growing speculation, it was widely expected that Van Nistelrooy would not remain at the helm for the club’s return to the Championship. That expectation was confirmed today when Leicester announced his departure through an official statement on their website.
