Leicester City manager Dave Bassett (R) grimaces as his club is demoted after a 0-1 loss to Manchester United in an FA Barclaycard Premiership match at Leicester’s Filbert Street stadium on Saturday, April 6, 2002.
Dave Bassett stated that while he enjoyed his time at Leicester City, some of Peter Taylor’s player recruitment “wasn’t very good.”
The former Sheffield United manager was appointed manager of the Foxes in 2001 with the responsibility of keeping them in the Premier League. However, Leicester were demoted before Bassett stepped down to become director of football, handing over the reigns to his assistant Micky Adams.
Bassett remarked on the Undr the Cosh podcast that the club felt the impact of selling Emile Heskey to Liverpool a year before his arrival.
“When I went there, there had been some crap recruitment,” he told me. “Emile Heskey had been purchased. Ade Akinbiyi had been summoned. He was a good lad who worked hard but lacked it. Trevor Benjamin was exactly the same. They spent around £8 million on those two. I respect Peter Taylor a lot, but his recruitment during that time period was subpar.”
Bassett also said that Adams felt pressure from supporters, which he believes led to the latter’s departure.
“Leicester was a good club.” It was enjoyable for me. Then I moved to the side to let Micky Adams in. They genuinely wanted a young boss. Harry Redknapp had nominated me for the position, which I had accepted. They liked the concept of my bringing Micky, but they wanted to give him a year or two to do it. He got them promoted the following season but demoted the following season.
“Mick left Leicester without having to. The board was not interested in him. They were mid-table, but he was irritated because he’d sent Dave Connolly on as a sub and then taken him off near the end. Fans began singing, “You have no idea what you’re doing.” Mick’s skin wasn’t as thick as you assumed.”
