- Ruud van Nistelrooy emerges as surprise leading candidate for Leicester City job
- Steve Cooper was sacked by the Foxes on Sunday
- Van Nistelrooy left Man Utd's coaching staff earlier this month
In a shock turn of events, Manchester United's recently discarded interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy has emerged as the leading contender to take over manager-less Leicester City, according to multiple reports.
Van Nistelrooy joined Erik ten Hag's coaching staff at United over the summer and was hurriedly shuffled into the hot seat after his Dutch compatriot got sacked at the end of October. The former United striker won three of his four matches in charge - including a pair of victories over Leicester.
Steve Cooper was dismissed by the Foxes on Sunday, just five months after he was appointed by the Championship winners over the summer. The former Nottingham Forest boss struggled to connect with the fanbase of his one-time rivals and steered the club to ten points in 12 league games.
On Wednesday night, The Telegraph broke the news that Van Nistelrooy was the frontrunner for the vacant position, with various publications swiftly declaring his imminent arrival. It remains to be seen whether the Dutch coach, whose only previous experience of senior management was an 11-month spell at PSV Eindhoven, will be appointed in time to take charge of Leicester's trip to Brentford on Saturday afternoon.
Cooper's assistants Alan Tate and Steve Rands were also dismissed, leaving the team in the hands of first-team coach Ben Dawson, who will be supported by coaches Danny Alcock and Andy Hughes.
Van Nistelrooy publicly admitted on several occasions that he wanted to stay on as part of United's coaching staff following the appointment of Ruben Amorim as head coach. However, the Portuguese boss didn't open up any lines of communication with his immediate predecessor throughout Van Nistelrooy's interim spell.
On the same day that Amorim arrived in Manchester for the first time after officially leaving Sporting CP, Van Nistelrooy's departure was confirmed.
