Ruud van Nistelrooy has enjoyed a solid start to life as manager of Leicester City.
The Foxes sacked Steve Cooper in November after he picked up just two wins from 12 Premier League matches.
Leicester City were in danger of slipping into the relegation zone and acted quickly to try and change things.
While a few different managers were linked, the Midlands outfit didn’t waste too much time opting to appoint Ruud van Nistelrooy as their new boss.
The Dutchman had just spent a few games as interim manager of Manchester United, where he beat Leicester twice.
Prior to that, however, he had only one full season of senior managerial experience under his belt, which came in the Eredivisie with PSV Eindhoven.
Despite only taking charge of a few Premier League games, Ruud’s start to life as Leicester manager has been good.
Gary Lineker looks on during the Premier League Hall of Fame 2024 Inductions event at HERE at Outernet on April 23, 2024 in London, England.
Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images for Premier League
Gary Lineker verdict on Ruud van Nistelrooy start at Leicester City
The 48-year-old watched on from the stands as his new team were hammered 4-1 by Brentford late last month.
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Van Nistelrooy then took charge of his first game as Foxes boss on December 3rd, picking up a huge 3-1 win over fellow strugglers, West Ham United.
This past weekend, meanwhile, late goals from Jamie Vardy and Bobby De Cordova-Reid saw Leicester draw 2-2 with Brighton and Hove Albion.
It was an impressive comeback from the Midlands outfit and Gary Lineker was now given his view on Van Nistelrooy’s start as manager after the game.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast this week, Lineker was discussing Ruud and offered a simple, seven-word verdict.
He said: “Good start, five points clear of relegation.”
Leicester City next five fixtures under Ruud van Nistlerooy assessed
As Lineker mentioned, Leicester are now five points above the bottom three after 14 games.
However, there is still a long way to go this season and 14 points means the Foxes are still nowhere close to the magic 40-point mark they will need to all but guarantee survival this season.
And unfortunately for Van Nistelrooy, Leicester’s upcoming Premier League fixtures are pretty hard.
They have a tough away meeting with Newcastle United to look forward to this weekend.
This is followed by a must-win against relegation contenders Wolverhampton Wanders on December 22nd.
After that, three seriously trick clashes await against Liverpool, Manchester City, and Aston Villa.
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