Leicester City are set to be relegated to the Championship in the coming weeks.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side have suffered 14 defeats in their last 15 games and have been cut 15 points adrift from safety.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 17 |  WolvesWolves | 31 | 9 | 5 | 17 | 43 | 59 | -16 | 32 |
| 18 |  IpswichIpswich | 31 | 4 | 8 | 19 | 31 | 65 | -34 | 20 |
| 19 |  LeicesterLeicester | 31 | 4 | 5 | 22 | 25 | 70 | -45 | 17 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 31 | 2 | 4 | 25 | 23 | 74 | -51 | 10 |
Remarkably, Leicester aren’t bottom, as Southampton have already been mathematically relegated following their 3-1 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.
Whilst that’s evidently inexcusable, it does give them a head start in planning for the Championship next season.
With that said, they’ve just made a key hire, which Leicester should be doing over the coming weeks.
Leicester’s expected promotion rivals Southampton make key recruitment hire
When reflecting on Leicester’s decline over the last three years, sporting director Jon Rudkin is always named as one of the main factors.
Leicester fans have urged Khun Top to sack Rudkin for years and even protested against the chief against Manchester United last month.
Supporters have argued his position has become untenable after countless errors, but City’s owner has decided to stick by him.
Meanwhile, Southampton are already beginning to reshape their recruitment team as they’ve just appointed Mariela Nisotaki, a highly-regarded scout.
Nisotaki played a key role in Norwich City’s excellent recruitment in South America, and so she’s been hired as Sport Republic’s (Saints owners) head of talent acquisition.
Southampton already one step ahead of Leicester
It very much feels like Southampton are already moving one step ahead of Leicester in preparation for next season’s Championship promotion race.
They’ve sacked manager Ivan Juric, so they’ve got plenty of time to cherry-pick his successor, with very little competition.
In fact, Southampton are looking to appoint Sheffield Wednesday’s Danny Rohl, who is also being targeted by the Foxes.
So, at this stage, City are very much playing catch-up, with Van Nistelrooy and Rudkin still in post.