LMA chief blasts Leicester City over Paolo Sousa sacking

Richard Bevan, the chief executive of the League Managers Association, has hit out at Leicester City after the club sacked manager Paolo Sousa after less than three months in charge.

Bevan believes new managers should be afforded the time to fully implement their new regime and critisicised City over the “knee-jerk dismissal”.

The LMA chief said: “How can a chairman expect to deliver success at a football club when a talented manager is recruited and dismissed within two months, at the start of the season and is given only nine league games to put his own imprint on the squad and the club?

“Knee-jerk dismissals, and the chopping and changing of managers will not deliver success on the field and is incredibly destabilising to the entire club.

“Paulo’s sacking is even more disappointing in light of the chairman’s comments on Paulo’s appointment, in the summer, when he stated he was ‘delighted to acquire a manager of such great calibre’.”

Leicester has had 14 managers since 2004 and six whilst current chairman Milan MandariÄ”¡ has been at the club.

Bevan added: “Clearly the club has to examine its manager recruitment strategy as their current approach does not work. It is damaging to the club and its fans and is an inappropriate way to treat talented managers and their careers.”

Sousa, who joined Leicester after leaving Swansea in July, said: “To be sacked after being told that there was a long term strategy at the club and after only nine games in charge is something that I find very surprising.”