Nigel Pearson is staying tight-lipped after many believed he had lost his job as Leicester City boss on Sunday.
Numerous sources and reports claimed that Pearson was out as Leicester boss after they lost 1-0 to Crystal Palace at home on Saturday, and a rather bizarre incident where he grappled with Palace midfielder James McArthur on the sidelines.
[ RELATED: Pearson still in charge ]
However Leicester released a statement on Sunday evening confirming Pearson was still in charge, as the club who sit bottom of the Premier League are sticking with their man.
Pearson, 51, met with the press on Monday ahead of Leicester’s trip to face Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday, and had the following to say about the speculation as things got tense.
“The club has made a statement. I am going to disappoint you all now. I am not going to speak about it,” Pearson said. “We have a game tomorrow. It is important that my focus and the focus of the players is on what we can do tomorrow night rather than talk about something that I’m not really prepared to talk about.”
Pearson was pushed further by the assembled media, but the Foxes boss wasn’t giving anything away and grew more frustrated as questions about his future persisted.
Leicester’s boss was also asked about the incident involving McArthur on Saturday and was less than complimentary about the opinions from the media about him appearing to pin down the Palace midfielder by the neck.
When things calmed down a bit, Pearson opened up a little about the speculation surrounding his future and his relationship with the clubs Thai ownership group. But not much.
“I have never been in an position where I speak openly about what goes on in internal workings. I have always had a good relationship with the owners and I’m sure I will going forward,” Pearson said. “The bottom line is that you are never going to have a situation at any football club where things are entirely going the way you want all the time. We are currently at the bottom of the league, there is speculation and unfortunately sometimes stories like this break. For me, I have to continue to lead the players. Anything that would be counter productive to our preparation for tomorrow night is going to detract from what we are trying to do. In an idea world, I’d rather the story not be out there, but it’s out there and I have to deal with it.”
There you have it...
Confusion still remains as to Pearson’s reign at the KP, as the stories linking him with being fired obviously came from a leak somewhere within the club. Pearson did confirm that he has had talks with the owners, but his insistence to not fully clear things up and get everything out in the open only leaves further questions marks as to his future with the Foxes.
For now the man who lead Leicester to promotion last season and has had a largely successful tenure in charge since taking over in 2011 will remain in charge. Can he keep them up? Can he keep his job?