Bilal El Khannouss posts cryptic six-word message straight after Leicester City part with Ruud van Nistelrooy

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Ruud van Nistelrooy has left Leicester City by mutual agreement, and Foxes ace Bilal El Khannouss has shared his thoughts amid his links with a transfer this summer.

Leicester City hired Ruud van Nistelrooy in November in the wake of Steve Cooper’s dismissal, but the Dutchman failed to steer the Foxes from relegation to the Championship.

Preparations at Leicester for the 2025/26 Championship campaign have been marred by uncertainty over the head coach’s future, and now van Nistelrooy has left Leicester by mutual consent.

As attention turns to van Nistelrooy’s successor, Leicester fans want Danny Rohl to take the reins at the King Power Stadium.

In the wake of the Dutchman’s departure, in which Leicester’s delay has been slammed by journalist Henry Winter, Leicester ace Bilal El Khannouss has shared his thoughts on the dilemma in cryptic fashion.

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Leicester City ace Bilal El Khannouss shares message after Ruud van Nistelrooy exit

Bilal El Khannouss was one of the few positives in Leicester’s ill-fated top flight relegation last term, after the Moroccan international scored two goals and notched three assists in 32 Premier League outings.

His form and potential have seen Bayer Leverkusen target El Khannouss in the summer transfer window, with their interest coming only one season after the creative midfielder arrived from Genk for a £21m fee.

EFL Analysis understands that El Khannouss’ Leicester future was contingent on the new manager that was expected to arrive to replace van Nistelrooy, who the 21-year-old shared a close relationship with.

This was evident in that all of El Khannouss’ goal contributions in the Premier League season for Leicester came following van Nistelrooy’s arrival.

Immediately after van Nistelrooy’s departure from Leicester was announced, the Foxes ace posted a cryptic message on social media, with a photo captioned in the final slide of his Instagram post: “Real is rare. Fake is everywhere.”

Van Nistelrooy sung the praises of El Khannouss throughout the campaign, and revealed that he believes the Moroccan can become a Champions League level player one day.

The former Foxes boss told Leicester’s media earlier in the season: “He’s playing and starting every game and an important player for us with his creativity and his work rate off the ball.

“The challenge for him is, at his young age, pushing himself to finally know where his ceiling is. His potential is there to be a top player in Europe in the Champions League, I think that’s where his potential is.

“But as I said, it’s important for him to work how he is on a daily basis and that he is consistent in that, because he can go a long way.”

As a result of his importance to the club’s promotion push next season, the Leicester faithful will be hoping the news of van Nistelrooy’s departure does not push El Khannouss towards Bayer Leverkusen’s interest this summer.

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Leicester City must not lose Bilal El Khannouss in summer transfer window

As well as Bayer Leverkusen, Arsenal admire Leicester’s El Khannouss, and the news of van Nistelrooy’s exit could turn Leicester’s dream transfer window into a nightmare situation.

El Khannouss proved last season that he can produce even amid the team’s dire straits, and that he has the potential to be a Premier League talent.

The Moroccan bronze medalist remains under contract at the King Power Stadium until the summer of 2028, so if El Khannouss does depart, the club would fetch a healthy fee in return.

An influx of funds could be prudent given Leicester’s financial issues, but the fallout from selling such an exciting player, who could propel the Foxes back to the top flight, would be far greater than the sacking of van Nistelrooy.