MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 07: Ruud van Nistelrooy, Manager of Leicester City, acknowledges the fans prior to the Emirates FA Cup Fourth Round match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on February 07, 2025 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Leicester City were dealt another defeat on February 7th, losing to Manchester United in controversial fashion.
The Foxes went into the game on the back of losing eight of their last nine Premier League matches and failing to beat Manchester United in their previous two meetings this season.
In turn, a tough evening was expected and though they probably didn’t deserve it, Leicester City lost 2-1 to Manchester United.
The Midlands outfit more than held their own in the first 45 and even took the lead just minutes before the break.
Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s effort was not enough to see Leicester progress into the next round of the competition, however.
Joshua Zirkzee and Harry Maguire found the back of the net in the second half, with the latter’s effort causing quite the stir post-match.
Leicester fans were fuming at Maguire’s goal, which was clearly offside, leading many to question why VAR was not in place vs Man Utd.
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Newly appointed Leicester City Manager Ruud van Nistelrooy arrives at the stadium to watch from the stands with owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha du…
Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images
Ruud van Nistelrooy Leicester City future is dependent on one man
In the grand scheme of things, exiting the FA Cup is not the end of the world for the Foxes and there were certainly encouraging signs coming out of the game.
Bilal El Khannouss and Caleb Okoli impressed for Leicester versus Man Utd, while another star was also excellent.
Wilfred Ndidi made his long-awaited return to the starting lineup at Old Trafford after being sidelined since a 2-2 draw with Brighton and Hove Albion.
Leicester fans praised Ndidi for his showing and expressed their view that the club’s survival hopes are dependent on the midfielder.
It’s hard to argue with that point as there is no doubt that the Nigerian greatly improved the Foxes during his time on the pitch.
Once he was taken off though, Man Utd got a much tighter grip on the game and likely would have won in extra time even without the offside goal.
Leicester are not expected to sack Ruud van Nistelrooy anytime soon but it’s now clear that Ndidi is the only hope they have of turning results around. But if he underperforms, Van Nistelrooy will likely be axed before the end of the campaign.
