Here is the man set to replace Claude Puel at Leicester

Leicester have announced the sacking of manager Claude Puel following the struggling Premier League side’s sixth defeat in seven games. Photo: Lindsey Parnaby/Getty Images

Leicester City have sacked Claude Puel as their manager after Saturday’s 4-1 home defeat by Crystal Palace and want to appoint Celtic’s Brendan Rodgers as his successor.

The club are expected to make an immediate attempt to lure Rodgers but are prepared to wait until the summer for the former Liverpool manager. It is questionable whether Rodgers would be willing to leave Celtic mid-season when he has the chance to win an unprecedented third treble in three seasons there.

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Leicester could also consider Newcastle’s Rafael Benítez, whose contract expires in June, but they have made Rodgers their top target after some months of succession planning.

The club’s hope had been that Puel could continue until the end of this season but the heavy defeat by Palace prompted them to act. It was the team’s fourth straight loss at the King Power Stadium and they have been beaten six times and drawn once in seven games since New Year’s Day.

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“The club would like to thank Claude for his efforts in leading the team during his 16 months in the role and wish him well in his future career,” Leicester said in a statement. Puel’s assistant Jacky Bonnevay has also left.

The first-team coaches Mike Stowell and Adam Sadler have been placed in temporary charge. The club may try to bring in an interim manager if they get signals from Rodgers that he is willing to take over in the summer.

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Leicester, Premier League champions in 2016, are 12th in the table. Their season was marked by tragedy in October when the owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four other people were killed in a helicopter crash.

Puel took over from Craig Shakespeare in October 2017 and the club finished ninth in his first season.

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