Marti Cifuentes is the new Leicester boss - is he the man for the moment or the man for the future?

ITV News

6 days ago

There's little doubt that last season was a watershed moment for L eicester City and their fans.
After much fanfare, a miserable return to the Premier League ended with relegation and with very little to celebrate.
The Foxes have had five managers since 2023. Two relegations and one promotion and that tells you all you need to know about a club who will not want to yo-yo between the top two divisions in the country.
So where are Leicester City now?
Well as decent a man as Ruud Van Nistelrooy is and as eloquent as he was with the media, him being in charge did not work.
When Ruud first came to Leicester, many were immediately sceptical, thinking that Steve Cooper should have been given more time.
After all, he did get better results. But Cooper's tenure was perhaps more complicated than results show, and it's been reported that all was not well behind the scenes when he was at the King Power Stadium.
The threat of a points deduction remains for Leicester and they now find themselves in the Championship, but without key players Jamie Vardy and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall who were instrumental in getting them promoted last time around.
That promotion of course was masterminded by Enzo Maresca who left for Chelsea shortly after.
With all of this in mind, Leicester have turned to former Queens Park Rangers boss Marti Cifuentes. The Spaniard left Loftus Road in June and he and Leicester will pay back some of the compensation he got when he left.
The appointment may not have excited fans, but Leicester City believe that for the squad they have right now and for the situation they are in, Cifuentes is the ideal man for the job.
Foxes fans at their most cynical will point towards Cifuentes being relatively cheap and willing to take on a huge project, but if we dig a little deeper, we can see the club's thinking behind the move.
Cifuentes came into QPR with the club second bottom of the Championship but managed to steer them clear of relegation amidst difficult times at Loftus Road.
Last season was even more difficult though and although he kept them up again, a decision was made to part ways.
I understand Leicester liked both what they saw and his vision for the Foxes. For example, his style of play which is possession and positional based play is reminiscent of Maresca.
He likes to attack with depth, width and pace.
He filmed a tactical masterclass on YouTube about how to attack a mid block (a condensed group of defensive tactics and players in the middle of the pitch) that give us hints of his vision for the 'new' Leicester City.
He also impressed with his man management skills and personable approach - at a time when the dressing room seemed at odds and fractured, this will surely be welcomed.
The fact he's willing and able to work with a squad who are a range of ages and talents is also a big plus.
Leicester City very much see Cifuentes as someone who can inspire and unify, bringing people together in what has been and could still be a really difficult period for the club.
It's also understood that his coaching style is very hands-on when it comes to the training pitch, another key point for players, who in the last few years have had to pick up varying styles from different managers quickly with little success.
That all being said, this season won't be easy. If you add in a points deduction, Leicester won't be automatically be the favourites to go straight back up. And yet there will still be that expectation from fans and within the club.
As a past Premier League Champion with lofty ambitions, Leicester City simply cannot afford to linger in the Championship.
There is talent in the squad, of that there is no doubt, and players like Jeremy Monga give hope for the future.
The question is whether Cifuentes has what it takes to get everyone on board and believing in his vision.
Leicester City have given him a two year deal, which could lead to three depending on performance, so they certainly think so.
The man for the moment or the man for the future? We will find out.