What Claudio Ranieri wants to do next as Leicester City hero resists calls.
The 72-year-old admits he has been tempted to come out of club football retirement after stepping back from his job at Serie A side Cagliari at the end of last season.
Leicester City hero Claudio Ranieri has resisted the allure of a return to club football as he holds out for a national team job.
Ranieri retired from club management in May when he left Cagliari, having achieved a great escape with the Italian side, keeping them in Serie A after a dramatic promotion the year before. But City’s Premier League-winning boss is not done with the game yet, and is waiting for a fun opportunity, preferably with a European national team.
However, clubs have tried to recruit Ranieri in the meantime, and missing the rush of management, the 72-year-old said he was tempted. However, he’s resisted to this point as he awaits a call from a national team. He’s only managed an international team before, dismissed after just four months with Greece in his last job before taking over at City.
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“I miss the adrenaline of football a bit and I have received a few phone calls, even from Italy,” Ranieri told Gazzetta dello Sport. “I admit I was tempted to come back right away, but in the end I resisted.
“My idea remains the same as at the end of May. I’m waiting for an adventure that excites me, something fun, preferably a European national team. At club level I think I’m done, but then you know how strange football is. Never say never.”
Because of his glory with City, Ranieri will forever be associated with footballing miracles. He retains hope of more shock successes around Europe, and has been impressed by Brest’s rise, the French side finishing third in Ligue 1 last term and now sitting second in the 36-team Champions League table after starting their European debut with back-to-back wins.
Asked if he could foresee another Leicester underdog triumph, Ranieri said: “I like dreams, so I hope so. Last year there was talk of Girona, but they are a club in the Man City galaxy. I like Brest, with full points in the Champions League.”
