Despite winning the Premier League last season in one of the biggest triumphs in football, heck in sporting history, Leicester City sacked Claudio Ranieri last night.
The Foxes have struggled to gain any sort of momentum this season, and even though they still harbour aspirations in the Champions League, Leicester ruthlessly fired the Italian from his post.
Nine months ago, Raneiri was celebrating Leicester's first Premier League trophy. How things have changed.
(Ranieri kisses the Premier League trophy.)
Advert
And Jose Mourinho - who succeeded Claudio Ranieri as Chelsea manager in 2004 - has led the tributes and shown his class with this brilliant message.
He posted a picture alongside the ex-Chelsea boss, accompanied with the words;
"CHAMPIONS OF ENGLAND and FIFA MANAGER OF THE YEAR. Sacked. That's the new football Claudio. Keep smiling AMICO. Nobody can delete the history you wrote."
Class act!
Advert
Since the sacking of Ranieri, Leicester released an official statement which reads;
"Leicester City Football Club has tonight (Thursday) parted company with its First Team Manager, Claudio Ranieri. Claudio, appointed City manager in July 2015, led the Foxes to the greatest triumph in the Club's 133-year history last season, as we were crowned champions of England for the first time. His status as the most successful Leicester City manager of all time is without question.
However, domestic results in the current campaign have placed the Club's Premier League status under threat and the Board reluctantly feels that a change of leadership, while admittedly painful, is necessary in the Club's greatest interest."
(Ranieri's final game in charge was a spirited 2-1 defeat to Sevilla.)
Advert
While vice chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha said:
"This has been the most difficult decision we have had to make in nearly seven years since King Power took ownership of Leicester City. But we are duty-bound to put the Club's long-term interests above all sense of personal sentiment, no matter how strong that might be.
Claudio has brought outstanding qualities to his office. His skillful management, powers of motivation and measured approach have been reflective of the rich experience we always knew he would bring to Leicester City. His warmth, charm and charisma have helped transform perceptions of the Club and develop its profile on a global scale. We will forever be grateful to him for what he has helped us to achieve.
It was never our expectation that the extraordinary feats of last season should be replicated this season. Indeed, survival in the Premier League was our first and only target at the start of the campaign. But we are now faced with a fight to reach that objective and feel a change is necessary to maximise the opportunity presented by the final 13 games."
Thank you, Claudio - You'll always be a legend!
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Leicester City, Chelsea, Manchester United, Mourinho