Leicester City were favourites for relegation at the start of the season, and Claudio Ranieri was odds-on favourite to be the first manager sacked.
But after 25 games they sit top of the Premier League, the Foxes find themselves five points clear of second placed Spurs.
Ranieri’s approach from the beginning appears to have been evolution, rather than revolution, and it seems as though he fully trusts his players.
The Italian has revealed that he never attempted to impose a tactical system on his new team, but rather sought to play to their strengths and offered an insight on their training schedule.
“My boys are training a lot, but not too many times,” Ranieri told Italian publication Corriere della Sera. “In England the game is always high intensity and wipes people out. They need more time to recover.”
“We play on Saturdays and then Sunday is free for everyone,” he said. “We resume on Monday with light training, the way they do it in Italy. Tuesday is hard training, Wednesday absolute rest. Thursday another hard workout, Friday is preparation for the match, Saturday another game.
“I make sure the players have at least two days off from football each week. This is the pact I made with the players on the first day: ‘I trust you. I’ll explain a little football ideas every now and them, as long as you give me everything’.”
Ranieri’s trust extends to the players’ diets, with the 64-year-old claiming he doesn’t impose strict rules because they run so much during games and work so hard in training.
“Sometimes we sit at the dinner table and I am frightened at how much they eat. I’ve never seen players so hungry. The first few times I was surprised, then I learned to smile. If they run this hard, they can eat what they like,” he said.
“In England they are aware they’re young, healthy and in a great job. It would be stupid to waste all that. When they train, they always put the same effort as a match. I never once had to tell someone off for being lazy.”
In essence, Ranieri seems like a gentleman and a pleasure to work with.
“I always tell my players to find the fire within themselves,” he said. “A chance like this will never come round again. Seek that fire, don’t be ashamed of it. And they are not ashamed, if anything they demand to dream.
“In an era when money counts for everything, I think we give hope to everybody.”
