Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Puel: Claude Puel’s Job Security at Leicester City

A terrific first half saw the Foxes flying high against Arsenal. However, Mesut Özil and the Gunners bested  the Foxes with a masterful second half. Leicester fell 3-1 and, like always after a lose, Claude Puel is on the hot seat.

This Thursday will see the one year anniversary of Claude Puel being appointed manager of Leicester City. With the exception of the first eight matches the Frenchman managed when the Foxes got 17 points with a record of 5-2-1, Puel has consistently been under threat of sacking since the start of the calendar year.

These rumors persist to this past week, with reports that current Celtic manger Brendan Rodgers is being lined up to replace Puel. Whether or not it is too early to see if Puel will be sacked, it is hard to deny the progress the Foxes have made this season.

Leicester City season recap

Leicester’s renaissance as a possession based team has been the main part of the ‘Puel-volution’. With this new strategy, the Foxes on paper and in practice have established themselves as a rock-solid mid-table club that will be fighting for seventh and the title of ‘best of the rest’ for years to come.

With wins against Wolves, Southampton, Huddersfield, and Newcastle, Leicester have won games that the club are supposed to win and three of their five loses were against ‘Big Six’ teams.

Not to mention the improvement seen from young players like Ben Chilwell, Demarai Gray, Harry Maguire, and James Maddison under Puel – a clear example of how the Foxes as a club have improved as a team. Finally, key players like Jamie Vardy, Kasper Schmeichel, and Wilfred Ndidi along with Maguire and Chilwell have signed multi-year extensions for the club proving the confidence the players have in the club.

However, even though the ‘Puel-volution’ is in full effect, reports of the Frenchman’s sacking always linger. Monday’s loss to Arsenal was deemed harsh by the boss and goalkeeper Schmeichel; the reason being no penalty decision for Rob Holding’s handball – Sky Sports with the details.