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4 hours ago
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Claudio Ranieri, manager
I remember in January, February that season Riyad Mahrez asked: “What do you think we can achieve?” I laughed, but didn’t say anything. Riyad said: “You know, you know.” I am a very pragmatic man … I knew we could do something special, but not to win the Premier League. Now people everywhere recognise me – people from the US, Canada and Asia ask to take pictures: “Leicester! The legend!” Unbelievable. It was a story that was something special for the world.
From the beginning of the season I told the players our goal was 40 points. The chairman, Vichai [Srivaddhanaprabha], told me it was important to stay up. When we got to 40 points, I said to the players: “Try to get into Europe because it would be a great experience.” When we qualified for the Europa League, I said: “OK, try for the Champions League.” When we achieved the Champions League, I said: “OK, this year or never again – this is our year” and we went out to win the title. It is a miracle because we were a little team but the effort, the mentality, was strong.
On the day Tottenham played at Chelsea I flew to Rome to have lunch with my mother. My flight back was going to arrive back too late for the game but I thought the pilot would tell me the result. But when Vichai heard, he sorted another flight. I arrived at my house in Leicester in time for kick-off.
Before Easter, Andrea Bocelli called: “I have to come to Leicester because you are doing something special.” “OK, I will put my secretary in touch with yours and you can choose the date to perform at the stadium.” The date he picked was the date we lifted the title, against Everton. Nobody imagined we would win the league when he selected the date, but he felt something. Now when I rewatch the footage of Andrea singing, it’s amazing, the people going crazy, so happy.
It changed the lives of everybody. For my players, who can say: “I won the Premier League.” I’m a very shy man, I don’t say: “I won the title!” But I’m very proud, very happy. In Leicester there is a big Indian community and some Indian people told me: “Thank you, Claudio, because now we link more with the Leicester people, the English people. When we go to the stadium, we push together.” And that is very, very special for me. It’s bigger than football.
Christian Fuchs, defender
We didn’t feel any pressure – the people that expected it least were ourselves. We worked hard but we didn’t take ourselves too seriously and that was a big ingredient that helped the players be comfortable, happy and have fun. It also had a lot to do with the culture of the club. Vichai and Top [Aiyawatt] were owners that were touchable. They were around all the time, you talked to them, you would dance with them. It’s very important in Thailand’s traditions that everybody is together like a family.
Everybody was just generally happy for each other to be successful. One of the biggest moments was when Vards scored in 11 successive Premier League games – everybody was just so happy for him to set the record.
After our first clean sheet Claudio took us out for pizza as a reward – it ended more in a pizza fight than actually eating the pizza. But that also characterised the group – we were just some misfits that wanted to stir things up and have fun along the way. Our WhatsApp group chat is still alive and kicking – it is something that binds you. We did the unthinkable.
Claudio was presented to the squad on our pre-season training camp in Austria. For the first week he was hands-off because he wanted to observe: “It looks good. I’m not going to change anything.” He implemented a couple of things but for a manager to step back and let things flow showed great strength and proved a great decision.
The best part was that our last game was at Stamford Bridge and Chelsea, champions the previous season, built a guard of honour. It still puts a smile on my face. For those legends to stand there and applaud is the ultimate.
Serge Pizzorno, Kasabian and lifelong Leicester fan
Claudio mentioned the band on Match of the Day after the first game. The club were playing Fire after our goals and he wanted to know the background. To get a shoutout from him was unreal. When we played the stadium at the end of the season, we sampled that clip of Claudio and used his voice as we walked on stage. He was clever because he lived in the city, walked the streets, did it the right way where he integrated with the culture.
No matter where we played – Europe, Japan, America – Leicester were everyone’s second team. Everyone was willing it to happen. The last five or six weeks, the whole city came together – at the school gates, post office, pubs, on the street, everyone was on this journey. It was such a special place to be: why can’t it always be like this? It was pure fairytale.
The whole 5,000-1 thing … Before every season my wife’s uncle is one of about 20 old boys who go to Skeggy, the nearest beach, and they always put £20 on Leicester winning the league. He won £80,000 – a lot of his pals cashed out, but he stayed strong. Ten years on, what a ride: win the league, play in the Champions League, win the FA Cup, couple of top-five finishes, a promotion, three relegations.
When the title season is documented, you can hear our music in the background, so, in a small way, we’re part of it. We played at Victoria Park [in Leicester], with 120,000 people on the field and I got pictures of my son with the Premier League trophy, Wes Morgan and Kasper Schmeichel. The players were in full party mode. You could see disbelief in their eyes – they were drinking Peroni on the side of the stage and then you remember they’re just young lads.
Mike Stowell, first-team and goalkeeper coach
Claudio did a couple of genius things: he changed to a back four the week before the season, from a back five, which was the platform for the “great escape” [avoiding relegation in 2015]. The rest of us thought: “We have quite an old back four, I’m not sure about this,” but Claudio was convinced. For him, the full-backs were there to defend the width of the box, so everybody else had to track back. We were great without the ball – not so good with it – but when we counterattacked: wow!
The other thing was Claudio gave the lads a week off after we lost at Arsenal in February. Danny [Simpson] was sent off and Danny Welbeck scored a winner with the last kick. Arsenal did a lap of honour. All we could hear was them in their dressing room. One of our players showed the staff a picture on Instagram of Arsenal’s players celebrating. Claudio said: “Listen, think about that and I will see you a week on Monday.” I remember Vards saying: “Did he just say a week Monday?” I’m not sure, I’ll check. “No, don’t, because if that’s the case, we’re off.” And they all jetted off to Dubai. They came back and we went on a mean streak. It was the worst thing Arsenal could have done. It was like poking the bear: we’re not losing this now.
The players loved a social at the right time. Once a month, on a Tuesday, they went out as a group. Wes was a great captain, a great leader. But we had leaders all the way through. Vardy. Schmeichel. [Robert] Huth was more English than German – he pulled everyone together. After every training session, Huthy would want me to kick about 40 crosses for him to head and kick out of touch because he just loved it. No nonsense, defend the box.
It helped that we got knocked out of the FA Cup and League Cup early, weren’t playing in Europe. People say Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United dropped off, but we lost three times, twice to Arsenal and once to Liverpool. If a team have that record, they win the league.
Danny Simpson, defender
We captured the imagination of everybody, everywhere. Every day things were sent to us: packets of Vardy Salted Walkers Crisps; I’ve still got the board game Guess Who? with my face on the front of the box, Leicester City edition; Monopoly. We were gifted Captain Morgan spiced rum bottles, Wes Morgan on the front. Just insane. You never wanted the bubble to burst.
We didn’t have a bonus for winning the league. Why would we after avoiding relegation? The chairman recognised that and bought us BMW i8s – I think Andy King’s still got his. I’ve still got the picture in my phone of all the cars lined up outside the stadium. The chairman also got each of us a little replica Premier League trophy. During the season Claudio gave all the players bells relating to his dilly-ding, dilly-dong saying.
The 3-1 win at Manchester City confirmed we were a really good team but it was after West Ham, after which we had four games to go, that I thought we could win the league. We went 2-1 down at home and Vardy got sent off but we scored a penalty in stoppage time to draw. It felt like we’d won. Psychologically it was a massive boost and probably a killer for Tottenham.
We spent a lot of time together. We’d go for dinners, the chairman would take us to London. For our Christmas do, we were running around Copenhagen dressed as turtles and superheroes. Claudio recognised the importance of balance and let us run with it. There was more pressure in the final 10 games of the previous season, when at risk of relegation; staff could lose jobs. The only pressure was: we’re never going to have this chance again.
Ken Way, psychologist
The foundations were created by Nigel Pearson, who I first met at Southampton and who took me to Leicester, Hull then back to Leicester. As much as I appreciate the job Claudio did, I believe Leicester would have won the league under Nigel. The momentum stemmed from Nigel that previous season. He’s got wonderful man-management skills – and a lot of credit should also go to Craig Shakespeare.
One of the things that created the team spirit was Shakey’s humour – the guy could have been a stand-up comedian. He had a lovely manner that if things seemed to be getting a bit tricky, he would crack a joke about the situation. I remember telling him: “Shakey, you are the glue that holds this team together.” He would understand the dynamics, the mood. Boy, is he missed.
Jamie Vardy led the camaraderie. Not only was he an incredible goalscorer but he dictated the fun. He was 110% full-on every waking moment. Once I saw Christian and Robert Huth disappear after training and they were just taking it in turns to kick the ball as hard as they could at one another’s backsides.
Steve Walsh, assistant manager and head of recruitment
We played 4-4-2 but I always said we played three in midfield: N’Golo Kanté either side of Danny Drinkwater. Others used to say three-quarters of the Earth is covered in water and the rest is covered by Kanté. Marseille wanted him and he wanted to stay in France but they stalled because of the fee for a second-division player from Caen. So we got him over to Leicester and pretty much kidnapped him until he signed a contract. I think other clubs dismissed him because of his size. We bought him for £5.6m and sold him for £32m, and he went on to win the Premier League again with Chelsea and the World Cup.
Shinji Okazaki, who came in from Mainz, was a real catalyst as well. His work rate was incredible; we effectively bought a striker and a midfielder in one. If he wasn’t supporting Jamie, he’d be defending and we did defend as an XI. Riyad Mahrez, who we signed for £450,000 from Le Havre the previous year, had the best first touch I think I’ve ever seen. He had the ability to kill the ball dead even if it was coming from 50, 60 yards.
Shakey and Mike took training in pre-season in Austria after Nigel Pearson had left and I sat in this little stand with Claudio and did a running commentary of what each player was like to get his knowledge up very quickly. When it came to Riyad, he said: “What does he do?” I said: “He’s a genius.” N’Golo and Riyad became very good friends but there was a bit of rivalry at training. I used to say to Riyad: “You’ll never get past Kanté.” He always gave me a wry smile if he did.
The culture and the atmosphere was so good, the jigsaw puzzle just fitted together, and that includes people off the pitch, like Dave Rennie [physio], Andrew Neville [operations director] and Matty Reeves [head of fitness and conditioning] who are still there. And Macca [Paul McAndrew] the kit man. I always say to him: “If Carlsberg did kit men … you’d be the best in the world.”
