Leicester City have been attributed with interest in former Lyon boss Pierre Sage with a managerial change for the new season increasingly likely.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s future at the King Power Stadium has been in doubt for weeks following the club’s relegation, and the hierarchy’s continued avoidance of talks with the Dutchman suggests he’s more likely to leave than not.
In the meantime, City have been linked with a host of managers, with Sage the latest.
French outlet L’Equipe say plenty of clubs have had the 46-year-old on their radar, including City’s future Championship rivals Southampton and QPR, as well as French sides Rennes, Toulouse, Reims and Montpellier.
They also report that Sage, out of work since being sacked by Lyon in January, has turned down two offers of jobs in the Middle East, and that he may be considered by a number of Ligue 1 clubs who could change their managers this summer, such as Lille, Nantes, and Lens - where Will Still is set to depart, the English-Belgian coach reportedly close to a switch to the Saints.
Wherever Sage goes to next, it will be just his second professional club as a senior manager.
In more than 20 years since he stopped playing, Sage has held a number of positions, in recruitment, in youth coaching and as an assistant manager.
He got his big break in 2023, when, as Lyon’s head of academy, he was promoted to interim charge of the first team.
Taking over in late November with the club bottom of the Ligue 1 table, Sage won 15 of his 22 league matches in charge to guide them to sixth and earn Europa League qualification. He also took them to the French Cup final, where they lost to PSG.
This season, his record was again pretty strong and Lyon were in sixth at the time of his dismissal, having secured qualification to the Europa League knockout stages with games to spare.
A poor January cost Sage, with just one win in six games in all competitions, including a penalty shoot-out defeat to a fifth-tier side in the French Cup.
Lyon’s owner John Textor said he did not feel confident Lyon could qualify for the Champions League under Sage, hence the change in manager. They ended up finishing sixth, where they were when Sage was sacked, and so missed out.
Speaking last month, Sage told The Athletic that he sees himself working in one of Europe’s top divisions, but did not rule out the Championship either.
“I’m now ready for a new project,” he said. “I want to begin next season either in France or elsewhere in Europe, ideally in the big five (leagues).
“My dream is to work in England because I think it’s the best country and the best league, the Championship is a good league too.
“My second job will perhaps be the most important. I think it was Jose Mourinho who said you become a coach when you are fired for the first time.”
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