The shocking Premier League table since Leicester appointed Van Nistelrooy

Leicester City’s form has been shocking since they appointed Ruud Van Nistelrooy as manager in late November last year.

Their return to the second tier has been all but confirmed after a dismal run of form that’s seen them lose eight consecutive matches at home without scoring a goal – a first for English football.

The Foxes have taken just seven points from half a season’s worth of games since Van Nistelrooy was chosen to be Steve Cooper’s successor, averaging considerably less than half a point per game.

Surprisingly enough, Leicester were actually 16th and sitting just above the relegation places when Cooper was sacked in November. The former Nottingham Forest coach led them to 10 points from the first 12 matches of the season – which is three more than they’ve mustered in 19 outings since then.

Van Nistelrooy actually started out promisingly with a 3-1 victory at home to West Ham, but in hindsight the freak stats from that match – the Hammers notched 31 shots and 10 on target – signalled trouble ahead.

Leicester followed that win with a spirited last-gasp comeback 2-2 against Brighton, but they’ve since gone on one of the worst runs in Premier League history – 16 defeats punctuated by a 2-1 victory away to Tottenham, which perhaps tells us more about the issues with Ange Postecoglou’s side than it does about Leicester.

“What is worrying is the run of form, the lack of goals, the lack of results we can’t produce,” Van Nistelrooy responded after their latest defeat to Newcastle United.

“Trying different things, different structures, different players in different positions and the results are not there.

“It’s a big challenge. We all know the run of form we’re in. It’s extremely difficult. Especially if there aren’t light points to build on. It’s important to analyse this and sleep on it and recover. That is it for now.”

Incredibly, Van Nistelrooy has as many wins in charge of Manchester United this season as he does at Leicester – despite only being there for four matches as interim coach between Erik ten Hag and Ruben Amorim. Two of those wins were over his current employers.

But how do Leicester’s results stack up against the rest of the division since the Dutch coach took over?

They don’t quite have the worst record, which serves as a reminder of how badly the three promoted sides have fared. Southampton have suffered the earliest relegation in Premier League history after taking just six points from their last 19 matches.

Ipswich are also adrift of any other team over the past half-season and look similarly doomed for the drop.

Leicester have taken less than a third as many points as Wolves, who were below them in the table when Van Nistelrooy was appointed, over the past 19 matches.

Elsewhere, Manchester City in 10th, Manchester United down in 15th and Tottenham as low as 17th all catch the eye in this wild 2024-25 campaign.

Here’s how the table stacks up in full since Van Nistelrooy was appointed:

Note: All teams have played 19 matches unless otherwise specified.

1. Liverpool – 42pts, GD +26
2. Arsenal – 40pts, GD +21
3. Nottingham Forest – 38pts, GD +12
4. Newcastle – 35pts, GD +13 (Played 18)
5. Crystal Palace – 35pts, GD +11 (Played 18)
6. Aston Villa – 32pts, GD 0
7. Chelsea – 31pts, GD +8
8. Bournemouth – 30pts, GD +12
9. Fulham – 30pts, GD +5
10. Manchester City – 29pts, GD +12
11. Brentford – 25pts, GD +4
12. Brighton – 25pts, GD -3
13. Everton – 24pts, GD +2
14. Wolves – 23pts, GD -8
15. Manchester United – 22pts, GD -4
16. West Ham – 20pts, GD -13
17. Tottenham – 18pts, GD -1
18. Ipswich – 11pts, GD -24
19. Leicester City – 7pts, GD -37
20. Southampton – 6pts, GD -36

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