Ranieri breaks silence over Leicester sacking

Cape Town - Claudio Ranieri has admitted that he was surprised to be shown the door at Leicester City after winning the Premier League last season.

The Italian led the Foxes to a miraculous league title in their previous campaign, but was caught in a relegation battle a few months later and subsequently sacked in February.

Ranieri spoke about his experience during a talk with inmates of the Rebibbia prison in Rome, revealing how shocked he was to lose his job. 

“Thinking of the dismissal by Leicester, the first thing that comes to mind is a sense of surprise even more than of bitterness,” Ranieri told the inmates, according to Express.

“I had gone through a lot in my long career, but I’d never experienced anything like that. It was a shock. 

"Even though, at the end of the day, these things happen in football."

He added: “This is my world. I started coaching in the Interregionale league in Catanzaro. 

"There were pitches with no grass, at times we had no water, no training equipment. I had to do it all myself.

“I never hitched my wagon to anyone, so what I achieved over the years was done with only my results on the field.”