Steve Cooper is now the top contender to become Leicester City’s new manager.
The 44-year-old, who has been unemployed since being sacked by Nottingham Forest in December, has engaged in further talks with Leicester, their East Midlands rivals.
Former Chelsea and Brighton manager Graham Potter and West Brom boss Carlos Corberan were also considered by the Foxes.
Earlier this week, Potter seemed to be the frontrunner in what has been a fluid situation, but Cooper has now emerged as the prime candidate.
Leicester had previously attempted to lure Potter to the King Power Stadium last April before their relegation from the Premier League. However, Potter was not ready to return to management just days after being sacked by Chelsea, where he had spent less than seven months in charge.
The Foxes, who won the Championship last season, will face Tottenham in their opening match of the next season following the release of the Premier League fixtures.
Leicester has been in search of a new manager since Enzo Maresca’s departure to Chelsea at the start of the month.
The club was disappointed that the title-winning head coach left after just one season, having guided them to an immediate return to the Premier League.
Maresca had expressed unhappiness with certain unresolved issues during the campaign, but post-season talks had resolved these problems, and the club had been looking forward to planning with the former Manchester City coach.
His departure did provide the club with around £10m in compensation, which will help with complying with profit and sustainability regulations.
Leicester faces the possibility of starting the season with a points deduction. The club was charged with breaching profit and sustainability rules in March and could face further punishment if they are not compliant by June 30, which may force them to sell players.
Cooper, who guided England Under-17s to victory at their World Cup in 2017, also spent two years at Swansea, leading them to the play-off final in 2021 where they lost to Brentford.
He won the Championship play-offs with Forest a year later, ending the club’s 23-year exile from the top flight, having taken over when the club was at the bottom in September 2021.
Under his leadership, Forest finished 16th in the Premier League in 2022-23, but he left the City Ground just before Christmas in the 2023-24 campaign with the club in 17th place.
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