Leicester City great Jamie Vardy once considered leaving the East Midlands for different possibilities. This was before he became the main man at Leicester. Now that the veteran Premier League striker has at long last left Leicestershire following a glorious career, City must replace Vardy. A daunting and monumental task awaits the chosen senior centre forward who succeeds the ex-England international.
But that very same problem was once on the mind of former Foxes managers Nigel Pearson, Craig Shakespeare and elite scout Steve Walsh (Snr, not the ex-Leicester captain and centre half). Thankfully for them, Vards, Leicester's legacy and all connected with the team - the one-time Fleetwood Town man decided to stay. This is the brief story of how that very trio of LCFC alumni managed to convince the King Power club's best ever player to stay on Filbert Way, of course.
How Nigel Pearson, Craig Shakespeare and Steve Walsh convinced Leicester City's best ever player to remain a Fox in Jamie Vardy’s darker days
Vardy didn't settle at Leicester straight away. He's admitted as much; his best man and once strike partner David Nugent duly substantiated that assessment. Evidently 'Nuge', also a top ex-Fox in his own right, knows as much about Vards as anyone in the game.
It is no secret that the pair, who soon became a fine duo, didn't get along or click at first. They would eventually become a deadly as well as simpatico LCFC pairing.
During Vardy's difficult first King Power campaign, he considered leaving within that initial year. He supposedly 'struggled to adapt' to higher divisions subsequent to leaving Fleetwood.
"He wanted to leave, go on loan, play somewhere else, but Nige, Shakey and Walshy told him to stay and crack on. Look what he’s achieved now"David Nugent
Prior to Nuge and Vards becoming a partnership, the management team had to have a chat about JV9's prospects.
"In Vardy’s own words, Pearson, Shakespeare, and Walsh told him: “We believe in you, this is why we brought you here, knuckle down and things will pay off.”"Leicester Mercury
Vardy did indeed stay. And he won pretty much everything going in England with City.