Leicester City’s cast of rejects and unknowns pull off ultimate heist

Leicester City's squad, manager and the owner have been pillars to their EPL title winning rise this year. Plenty of players in this squad are unknown or rejects at other clubs. Claudio Ranieri, the manager, has had a stint with Chelsea where he was told he would never win something. (Source: Getty Images)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Danny Simpson: In his seven-year stint with Manchester United, he was mostly serving loan spells before moving to Newcastle. But off-field controversies and a subsequent slump in form saw him returning to Championship, with QPR . But he was soon off-loaded to Leicester, where he was almost sacked, as his former partner alleged him of abuse and he subsequently had to do community service. But he implored the management to retain him. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Christian Fuchs: After a disappointing season with Schalke last year, the Austrian decided to pack his bags to the United States. He had married an American and bought an apartment in Manhattan. Apart from professional football, he wanted to try his hand at NFL as well. That was before he got a call from former manager Pearson. Two calls later, over which they discussed the tactics and philosophy, he decided to embrace the tougher grind of EPL. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Kasper Schmeichel, The second Great Dane: Instead of following his father’s footsteps to Manchester United, he took to the blue half of Manchester at 16. But City loaned him out to second division sides before he moved to Notts County in 2009. Leicester, then in Championship, roped him aboard in 2011, and ever since has been instrumental in helping them win the Championship, stave off relegation and then help them to the title. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Robert Huth, second wind: At 20, he had established himself as the first-choice defender in Claudio Ranieri’s Chelsea side. At 22, the German made his international debut. But when the club grew more ambitious, he was ditched. The burly defender’s career slipped away. He found himself in Stoke City, where he was loaned to struggling Leicester. But rejoining his mentor rejuvenated him so much so that he is back in Germany’s Euro 16 plan. (Source: AP)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Leonardo Ulloa, super sub: Like many young Argentine strikers, Ulloa wanted to be like Hernan Crespo and Gabriel Batistuta. Instead he found himself in second division Spanish side Almeria before switching to Championship side Brighton. A haul of 23 goals in 50 matches was enough for Leicester to shell out a club-record eight million pounds. Jamie Vardy’s presence meant his opportunities came few and far between this season, but he netted crucial goals. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

N’Golo Kante, Bargain buy: The rise of French midfielder of Malian descent owed to smart scouting by Steve Walsh, the Leicester scout, who unearthed the stat that no one in France had made as many tackles or interceptions per game — the respective numbers read 4.8 and 2.9 last year. As a youngster, many managers, including Arsene Wenger, thought he was not strong enough for the physical EPL. (Source: AP)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Riyad Mahrez, Ligue 1 reject: The day after his father died, when he was 15, he promised his mother that they wouldn’t live a life of poverty, like most in the crammed immigrant town of Sarcellas in France. The Algerian-origin teen promised to fulfill his father’s dream of playing for a big club. With optimism he attended trials of French clubs, but the scouts deemed he was too skinny and “pencil-legged”. (Source: AP)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Danny Drinkwater, United Discard: As a kid growing up in Manchester, he wanted to be like Paul Scholes. At 19, he was on the aisle to emulate him. The year his room-mate Danny Welbeck made his senior debut, he was shunted out to a loan spell before United dispelled him to Leicester. Even there, he was on the fringe as Estaban Cambiasso was in his pomp. But the Argentine's retirement changed it all. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Wes Morgan, championship pick: The scouts made fun of his girth and the teenager almost thought of quitting before a Notthingham Forest coach took him to the junior side. He made slow progress, but eventually, became a permanent fixture at the heart of the Forest’s defence. Impressed, Pearson ferried him to Leicester and made him the captain. He won over Claudio Ranieri’s trust too. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, Thai owner: Worth two billion according Forbes list, he made most of the money through duty free shops in various parts of the world. He bought the club from Milan Mandaric for £39m in 2010. Ever since, he has been actively involved with the club’s day-to-day affairs and is widely known as a benevolent owner, giving the coaching staff a free run in the transfer market. (Source: Reuters)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Claudio Ranieri, Thinkerman: Over his three-decade-long managerial career, the Italian had acquired several nicknames, most of them with a mocking hue, like “deadman walking”, “tinkerman” and “TV destroyer”. He has managed the elites of world football, but ironically, it was with Leicester that the 64-year-old will achieve footballing immortality. Now they call him 'the thinkerman'. (Source: AP)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Jamie Vardy, non-league footballer: Rejected by Sheffield Wednesday, he began working in a carbon-fibre splint factory. He squeezed in time to represent Stocksbridge in the neighbourhood league, for 30 pounds a match. But impressive performances saw him move up. This was where Leicester, then plying in the Championship, spotted and bought him for a record of million pounds in 2012. Rest is history. (Source: AP)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen

Shinji Okazaki, Japanese outlier: The Japanese was another player perceived ill-suited to the English game — short in stature and relatively less pacy. For a striker, his tally of 79 goals from 249 games in various clubs in Germany was little less prolific too. But in Okazaki, Claudio Ranieri found a perfect foil to Jamie Vardy. His tactical awareness and intelligent off-the-ball movement were exceptional this season. (Source: AP)
5000 to No. 1, Leicester’s dirty dozen