Leicester City have appointed Steve Cooper as the manager to replace Enzo Maresca following the Argentine leaving for Chelsea.
Steve Cooper has been out of work since being sacked by Nottingham Forest in December with the club on a bad run of form and facing the threat of relegation.
That is exactly the fate Leicester City are looking to avoid upon their Premier League return and the club have decided Cooper is the man to oversee that.
Graham Potter was believed to be the club’s first choice manager candidate but was not convinced it was the right job for him so Leicester acted decisively to appoint Cooper.
Steve Cooper labelled ‘decent appointment’ despite Leicester City fan reaction
The reaction to Cooper’s appointment has been mixed, with some feeling it is an uninspired choice and others simply unable to see past his association with rivals Nottingham Forest.
However, perhaps Leicester fans would do well to look at the job Cooper did at Forest, as well as Swansea City before them.
Cooper guided Swansea to consecutive play-off finishes in the Championship prior to taking the Forest job and steering them from the relegation zone to promotion via the play-offs in less than a season.
He then kept Forest up upon their return to the Premier League whilst managing a squad thrown together due to the high number of departures the summer that followed promotion.
This point was made by The Mail on Sunday’s James Sharpe, as he posted on ‘X’: ‘Steve Cooper it is, then. I think it’s a decent appointment.
I don’t really understand the grumblings tbh. Leicester are currently, whether you like it or not, a basket case.
Cooper showed at Forest he can deal with unknown players and point deductions’.
Cooper appointment makes sense given Leicester’s situation
As Sharpe highlighted, Leicester appointing Cooper could actually prove a very sensible move.
Not only does Cooper have recent experience of navigating the wrong end of the Premier League, but he has shown he can make it work with a group of players thrown together.
Due to financial concerns and the threat of points deducted due to PSR, Leicester will not be spending huge amounts this summer so need a manager who can get the best out of the squad and that is where Cooper is highly-regarded.
He is also proven to improve players and help develop the talent at his disposal, owing to his time as England under-17 manager; during which he won the World Cup.
The improvement of Morgan Gibbs-White at Forest is just one example of how he has helped a young player elevate his game to the next level and Leicester fans should forget any preconceptions they may have and embrace Cooper’s arrival.
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