Ex-Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in contention for Leicester City job?

On the back of their relegation from the Premier League, the Foxes hierarchy are assessing their options ahead of attempting to earn an immediate return.

As it stands, caretaker manager Dean Smith has not been officially ruled out of remaining in the role and talks are said to have continued with the Englishman.

However, the East Midlands outfit are known to be contemplating alternatives as they bid to make an appointment as soon as possible to begin preparations for the Championship.

According to the Daily Mail, former Fulham boss Scott Parker and Manchester City coach Enzo Maresca have joined Smith in featuring towards the top of their shortlist.

Nevertheless, the same report suggests that Solskjaer has emerged as a surprise candidate to return to English football to take on a second-tier campaign.

The Manchester United legend has been out of work since departing his role as boss of the Red Devils in November 2021, bringing to an end a 168-game stint.

Although Solskjaer recorded 91 wins and 40 defeats, reaching a Europa League final in the process, there is a mixed perception over how he fared at the Theatre of Dreams.

That said, the Norwegian is said to have support in the Leicester boardroom, keeping him as an outside bet to move to the King Power Stadium.

The 50-year-old's only experience of the Championship was a brief period with Cardiff City in 2014, initially overseeing relegation from the Premier League before being sacked from his position after just over a month of the new campaign.

Leicester will not want to delay the appointment of a new manager with a overhaul of the first-team squad being required due to players leaving on free transfers and key men attracting offers.

James Maddison has been heavily linked with a £40m transfer away from Leicester, who will cash in on the playmaker due to just over 12 months remaining on his contract.

Harvey Barnes also has admirers in the Premier League, although Leicester may look to retain the services of many of their other squad members in order to keep some continuity.