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Ruud van Nistelrooy's Leicester City criticism has already been answered - and fans will love it

Ruud van Nistelrooy
-Credit: (Image: Carl Recine)


Ruud van Nistelrooy is set to be appointed as Leicester City's new manager. It is hoped that the Dutchman will be in position ahead of Saturday's Premier League trip to Brentford.

The Manchester United legend impressed the Foxes hierarchy with his short spell as interim boss at Old Trafford, defeating Steve Cooper's side twice. Less than a week from the Welshman’s departure, City have acted quickly.

News of Van Nistelrooy's imminent appointment has injected a feel-good factor back into the fanbase, something that had been blatantly lacking this season, for a number of reasons.

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However, plenty has been made on the risk of Van Nistelrooy's appointment. The 48-year-old has managed just 54 senior matches but his coaching CV dates back to 2014.

Comparisons have been drawn to Enzo Maresca, who played with Van Nistelrooy at Malaga, due to the risk that comes with his arrival. But unlike with Maresca, Van Nistelrooy has already laid out his coaching blueprint in the past - and it is guaranteed to get Leicester fans excited.

During his final months at PSV Eindhoven, the former striker sat down with Gary Neville on The Overlap to open up about his journey in coaching.

"I spoke to Guus Hiddink, who was at the Dutch national team. He told me to start my badges and come see if I like it or not," he explained. "I started doing my coaching badges, about 10 years ago, at the academy here at PSV with the U17s one or two days a week, then I started doing individual training with strikers. Little by little, I really started liking it."

Ruud van Nistelrooy and Guus Hiddink
Ruud van Nistelrooy joined Guus Hiddink's coaching staff for the Netherlands national team in 2014 -Credit:VI Images

He added: "I think I needed it [the learning from the bottom instead of a big job straight away]. If you don’t feel that you need it, and you get the chance to start wherever, of course it’s different.

"I felt that I really needed to start at the bottom, leading a group of kids, training them, seeing how you can help the individual, get them playing as a team and making those decisions on team behaviour. That’s where you learn the trade and make the mistakes.

"When I coach a team, I like to see the ball with my team. When we have the ball, I’m like, ‘Yes, come on, now we can start playing and creating’, I have a feeling that we have the ball, I like us to prepare and attack.

"We play possession to a certain moment where you’re going to hurt the opponent. That's the reason to play possession. So in that sense, I’m really looking for the moment to speed up, or finish the attack, or go for goal, or another pass. That is when I really start to tick."

At PSV, Van Nistelrooy lifted the Johan Cruyff Shield, the Netherlands’ equivalent of the Community Shield, and the KNVB Cup. However, during his very short spell in Eindhoven, he did suffer lows including an early exit in the Champions League.

"The most difficult thing is dealing with results," he continued. "As a manager, you feel responsible for the result when you lose. It feels like the world is ending.

"At the start of the season, we got knocked out of the play-off in the Champions League against Rangers and what you feel then, as a manager, it’s tough. I couldn’t explain it but as a player, I never experienced that volume. You feel a collective responsibility for the fans, players and everything."

Van Nistelrooy will arrive at the King Power Stadium with coaching experience that includes stints as individual striker coach, assistant manager, head coach and interim boss. For someone with little experience on the sideline, he has plenty of knowhow on the training ground.

What are you thoughts on Van Nistelrooy's imminent appointment at Leicester? Tell us in the comments...