Former Leicester City assistant manager and caretaker boss Michael Appleton is back in work, tasked with performing a miracle at Shrewsbury.
Appleton, who spent the 2017-18 season at City in a number of roles, has been handed the reins at League One’s bottom club after Gareth Ainsworth chose to drop down a division to join Gillingham.
Signing a deal to the end of the season, Appleton takes over a Shrewsbury side that is 14 points from safety in the third tier with nine games remaining.
Although Ainsworth, appointed in November, had not turned around Shrewsbury’s form enough to take them off the bottom of the table, the club “made every effort to persuade him to stay”, they said.
Having been unable to convince Ainsworth, they’ve acted quickly to appoint a replacement in Appleton, who director of football Micky Moore described as their “number one target”.
Appleton’s first game in charge will be against table-toppers and promotion favourites Birmingham City, who are managed by another former Leicester assistant in Chris Davies.
Taking over Shrewsbury marks Appleton’s first job in a year, since he was sacked by Charlton last January after just four months in charge.
Brought in at the King Power in the summer of 2017 to be Craig Shakespeare’s assistant, Appleton found himself in caretaker charge that October, winning his two games as interim boss.
When Claude Puel was appointed, he became the club's first-team coach but left at the end of the season following a restructure.
He’s since spent three years in charge of Lincoln, before ill-fated spells with Blackpool and Charlton.
Director of football Moore said: "I'm absolutely delighted - along with the chairman and board of directors - to welcome both Michael and Richard (O'Donnell, assistant manager) to the club.
"It's been a difficult seven days. But once Gareth Ainsworth made the decision to leave, it was important we acted quickly to find the right man to guide us through the remainder of the season.
"Michael was my number one target. And I'm thrilled that over the last 24 hours we've been able to get a deal over the line - with Michael and Richard joining us until the end of the season.
"I know the past few days have been difficult for supporters. Nobody likes confusion and uncertainty.
"But hopefully now, by making this quick appointment, we can all get behind Michael and Richard for the remaining nine games of the season."
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