Roberto Mancini 'not interested in Leicester City job', tweets support for Claudio Ranieri

The Italian is a long-time friend of Ranieri and tweeted a message of support after the 65-year-old was sacked by Leicester on Thursday evening.

"I am sorry for my friend Ranieri," Mancini wrote. "He will remain in the history of Leicester City Football Club, in the heart of Leicester fans and all football lovers."

But Mancini, who enjoyed a brief stint at Leicester in 2001-02 during his illustrious playing career, has reportedly been approached by the club's owners over the vacant manager's position.

Despite the claims from Sky Sports, Mancini has been installed as the bookies' favourite for the job of keeping the Premier League champions in the top flight, although initial reports suggested that a number of the players were keen on reuniting with former boss Nigel Pearson - who was replaced by Ranieri in June 2015.