Leicester want Potter to replace Rodgers but few managers will want this bleak project

Leicester are in a relegation battle, will lose their two best players in the summer and have no money to speak of. Who’s up for it? Anyone?

Leicester looked like an attractive prospect for managers at the end of last season. Had Brendan Rodgers left then – which in glorious hindsight would have been a smart move both for him and the club – there would have been no shortage of options to replace him. Now, faced with the very real prospect of relegation, with a poor-quality squad sure to be without its two best players next season, and no money to replace them, it’s arguably the least attractive role in the Premier League.

The timing of Rodgers’ exit was odd. He would have left at the end of the season, but why now? Adam Sadler lost his first game in charge and it looks sure either to be him or an interim boss for the rest of the season before a permanent appointment in the summer. Rafa Benitez now has a reputation as something of a firefighter, but things must have turned pretty sour behind the scenes for him to be considered a better bet for keeping Leicester up than the manager who’s been with them for four years and brought plenty of success in that time.

To make the decision so soon after the international break, during which they could have got a replacement – interim or otherwise – through the door to work with the players before the season restarted, suggests further fuzzy thinking at board level that could easily cost them Premier League football.

READ MORE: Brendan Rodgers would be a good Spurs manager – better than most Spurs fans are willing to admit

They’re currently 19th and on a run of no wins and six defeats in their last seven, with two of those defeats coming against relegation rivals Southampton and Crystal Palace. That form suggests Leicester had no option but to part ways with Rodgers, but that only makes sense if they can replace him with someone who’s going to improve on those results.

Graham Potter, even if he wasn’t licking what must be some pretty extensive wounds from his time at Chelsea, surely won’t go near Leicester until their Premier League status is assured. While his career will recover from the disappointment of his time at Stamford Bridge, following that with immediate relegation would seriously test the strength of his future cover letters. Reports suggest Potter’s waiting for the West Ham job, which feels like a far better fit.

Even in the summer, assuming Leicester stay in the top flight, they will struggle to attract the calibre of managers that would have been available to them a year ago. Jamie Vardy is done. Youri Tielemans is leaving at the end of his contract. And there will be plenty of interest in James Maddison, who they will have to sell to balance the books. So they’ve got to replace a 20-goal-plus striker, a midfielder who’s been among the Premier League’s best quarterbacks in the last few seasons and a very gifted playmaker, all with next to no money.

And although Leicester have been labelled ‘too good to go down’ this season, the squad apart from those three outstanding individuals is mediocre at best. Other than for Harvey Barnes – who would be worth a punt despite an inauspicious season – you can’t imagine Leicester fielding a host of calls from clubs looking to poach many of their other players should they go down.

Which suggests that if they stay up they will be set for another relegation battle if they don’t make significant changes to the playing staff on top of replacing a trio who will be irreplaceable on the budget given to any new manager. Tempting.

Leicester clearly felt that their best way of avoiding relegation was without Rodgers, and they may be right. But perhaps the board members should have recognised the level of attraction of the club now compared to previous years, when they had the kudos and sound footing to hold talks with Potter, Thomas Frank or Marco Silva.

They surely won’t land a manager of that standard now, and maintaining their Premier League status will only slightly increase the level of attraction, with their future as bleak as it’s been for a decade.

RANKED: All 14 Premier League manager changes this season with Graham Potter bottom