Premier League side Fulham appointed Claudio Ranieri as manager after sacking Slavisa Jokanovic, according to Marcus Christenson of the London GUARDIAN. The Italian, who led Leicester City to the EPL title in '16 and has also managed Chelsea, takes over the club which is last in the league. Fulham said that Ranieri signed a "multi-year contract" and Owner Shahid Khan said, "Claudio is risk-free and ready-made for the Premier League, and particularly so for what we need at this moment at Fulham." Ranieri was most recently in charge of Ligue 1 side Nantes, which he "left by mutual consent last May after one season." The sacking of Jokanovic comes less than three weeks after Khan "strongly backed the manager" amid suggestions that the Serb would be sacked after a summer spend of more than £100M (GUARDIAN, 11/14). REUTERS' Simon Evans reported Khan said that he made the decision "reluctantly." Khan: "I wasn't anticipating having to make this announcement related to Slavisa and wish the circumstances were such that I didn't have to. But our path this season has led me to make what I know is the correct decision, at the right time, for our players, the club and our supporters" (REUTERS, 11/14). ESPN.com reported Ranieri is "set for a quick reunion" with Leicester City, which will play at Craven Cottage on Dec. 5. Ranieri's first game in charge will be against Southampton (ESPN.com, 11/14).
MAN OF HIS WORD: In London, Matt Law reported Arsène Wenger turned down the chance of returning to the Premier League with Fulham before the club appointed Ranieri. Fulham confirmed it had "considered and spoken to a number of candidates." But Wenger "politely declined the opportunity to speak to Fulham," sticking to his vow not to manage another EPL club after leaving Arsenal. It is understood Wenger is "waiting for the right opportunity abroad," with Bayern Munich "likely to be a job that would interest the Frenchman" if it became available (TELEGRAPH, 11/14).
