Former Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri made an emotional return to the King Power Stadium on Thursday to pay his respects to Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the club’s late chairman.
The Thai businessman was one of five people who lost their lives when their helicopter came crashing from the sky after Sunday’s game against West Ham.
Ranieri, who was of course the man responsible for navigating the Foxes to the Premier League title in 2015/16 under Srivaddhanprabha’s ownership, returned to scene of his greatest triumph to offer a prayer in front of the impromptu memorial that has been created outside the stadium.
Claudio Ranieri returns to the King Power Stadium to pay his respects to his friend Vichai #lcfc pic.twitter.com/oWogCMIrgq
— Mr Geoff Peters (@mrgeoffpeters) 1 November 2018
Ranieri was accompanied by Khun Vichai’s son, Aiyawatt, as he laid a wreath among the flowers, shirts, scarves and poems that have come to cover the concourse beside the ground.
Having postponed their midweek Carabao Cup tie, Leicester have already vowed that they intend to fulfil their Premier League fixture against Cardiff City this coming weekend as the hard graft of continuing Srivaddhanaprabha’s vision without him begins in earnest.