LEICESTER, England — They lived the dream, but now comes the nightmare. Seven years after completing the most improbable sporting fairy tale to win the Premier League, Leicester City were relegated to the second-tier EFL Championship on Sunday despite beating West Ham United 2-1 on the final day of the season.
This trajectory from champions to Championship in such a relatively short time period raises questions about how a club still possessing so much individual talent could fall so far.
There are no easy answers, though. The complicated postmortem that now lies ahead was epitomised in the supporters' reaction to confirmation of their fate.
Some tried to start up chants against the owners near the end but few followed. The players embarked upon a brief lap of appreciation to a soundtrack of boos and applause, some keen to recognise their efforts while others voiced frustration at a lack of application across the season. — Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga & more (U.S.) — Read on ESPN+: EFL Championship playoff is sports' best event Nobody could realistically blame Leicester manager Dean Smith, who was parachuted in for eight matches following Brendan Rodgers' departure in early April.