Leicester City are staring down the barrel of an immediate relegation back to the Championship, and that could spell bad news for the Premier League.
Since Ruud van Nistelrooy was appointed as Leicester manager in November, the Foxes have gone backwards rather than forwards.
Statistics show that Van Nistelrooy is doing worse than Steve Cooper, who was heavily criticised during his five-month tenure at the King Power Stadium.
Leicester have struggled to score goals under the Dutchman’s tutelage, netting just four in their previous nine matches while conceding 26 in their last 11 outings.
It’s been a miserable period for everyone involved with the football club, especially as Leicester signed just one player in the transfer window and could now pay the ultimate price.
The Premier League want Leicester City to avoid relegation
Leicester are joined in their struggles this season by the other two sides who earned promotion last season – Ipswich Town and Southampton.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 16 |  EvertonEverton | 23 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 23 | 28 | -5 | 26 |
| 17 |  WolvesWolves | 24 | 5 | 4 | 15 | 34 | 52 | -18 | 19 |
| 18 |  LeicesterLeicester | 24 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 53 | -28 | 17 |
| 19 |  IpswichIpswich | 24 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 22 | 49 | -27 | 16 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 24 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 18 | 54 | -36 | 9 |
While the Saints are marooned to the bottom of the table on nine points, Ipswich are in 19th place on 16 points, with it looking increasingly likely that all three promoted sides could go down.
This happened last season when Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton Town were relegated to the second tier just a year after reaching the top flight.
With the amount of money being spent at the top and the lucrative TV deals, the gap between the Championship and Premier League continues to grow.
And according to Premier League’s chief football officer Tony Scholes, this is a huge problem. “That’s a significant matter,” Scholes told Sky Sports.
“We keep a close eye on that. The quality of this league is just unbelievable. Clubs coming up out of the Championship into this league do find it incredibly difficult. We see that.
“Ipswich, for example, have invested a lot of money this year. Hopefully they’re there, they’ve got a chance of staying up, but right now they’re in a difficult position.
“It is difficult to break in. But no, it would not be good for the league if the three who are coming up went back down again year on year.”
- READ MORE: Leicester could still sign free agent winger who Jurgen Klopp called a ‘wonderful player’
Ipswich more likely to survive than Leicester City
It would be detrimental for the Premier League if all three promoted sides instantly returned to the Championship for the second year running.
Having failed to address their issues in the January transfer window, Leicester would be lucky to avoid slipping through the trap door.
Ipswich, on the other hand, threw money at it once more this winter, signing four players who could help drag them to survival.
The Tractor Boys splashed big money to lure Jaden Philogene from Aston Villa and also shelled out on West Brom goalkeeper Alex Palmer while signing Julio Enciso and Ben Godfrey on loan.
Kieran McKenna achieved backing from the board to address key areas in his squad, and in turn, will hope their form can turn on its head.
Indeed, Ipswich look more likely to survive in the Premier League than Leicester currently – purely based on the ambition shown.