Leicester City have confirmed Dean Smith as the club’s new manager on a short-term deal until the end of the season.
The Englishman, who previously managed Aston Villa and Norwich City, arrives at King Power Stadium as Brendan Rodgers’ interim successor.
With the Foxes mired in the battle for relegation to the Premier League, his job will be to ensure their survival in the top flight with just eight games to play.
Smith will be joined by his former Villa assistant John Terry and former Canary Islands manager Craig Shakespeare, who previously worked as a manager himself at Leicester following the departure of Claudio Ranieri in 2017.
“I’m thrilled to be able to lead the team in these final weeks of the season,” Smith told the club’s website.
“The challenge ahead of us is clear, but my coaching team and I have faced it before and given the quality of this team and the number of games remaining, it is quite achievable.”
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dean Smith as the club’s general team manager until the end of the 22/23 season.
— Leicester City (@LCFC) April 10, 2023
Leicester parted ways with Rodgers, their second longest-serving manager in the Premier League era, after he failed to turn things around, leaving them one place bottom of the Premier League.
The Northern Irishman has led the club to FA Cup and Community Shield success during his tenure, as well as consecutive European finishes in 2019-20 and 2020-21.
Smith, meanwhile, was sacked by Norwich last December after a disappointing start to their first season in the Championship.
The Foxes will next play in the Manchester City title chase on Saturday and then return home to host the Wolves in what is likely to be a crucial survival game a week later.
City have 25 points in 30 games but are just five points clear of West Ham in 14th in a congested bottom half.