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Favourite Mancini drifts for Leicester vacancy

Never before have the Premier League title winners struggled so badly in the following season but never before had those champions belied odds of 5,000-1 to finish on top in the first place.

However, the warm glow of last season's stunning success has turned into a storm stronger than Doris with Leicester ruthlessly sacking Claudio Ranieri on the eve of the most critical weekend of the season for those involved in the relegation dogfight.

Eight of the bottom nine are in action on Saturday looking to drag the 17th-placed managerless champions further into trouble before their crunch clash with Liverpool on Monday.

Leicester are only 7-4 to be relegated and Betway go 8-13 that City end this round of matches in the bottom three, but despite the obvious need for action there appears no quick fix to replace Ranieri.

Fellow Italian Roberto Mancini was at one stage a fairly strong favourite but he has drifted from odds-on out to 9-2 with Betfred to get the King Power gig in a wide-open betting heat.

Alan Pardew is second on the list at 10-1, followed by 11-1 Nigel Pearson and 12-1 pokes Guus Hiddink and Frank de Boer, while current caretaker Craig Shakespeare is available at 20-1 to write his name into the City history books on a permanent basis.

It's a total mess and the fact bet365 rate the Foxes 4-9 to accumulate no more than 37 points highlights the grave danger Leicester find themselves as they look to avoid becoming the first English champions to suffer relegation since Manchester City in 1937.

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