Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson made the jibe as his side lost to Liverpool . Even by the standards of the football terraces, it’s an inflammatory jibe. But video footage has emerged showing the manager of Leicester City told one of his own team’s supporters to ‘f*** off and die’. The extraordinary incident came during a match on Tuesday, which Nigel Pearson’s side lost to Liverpool. He exchanged abuse with the fan during the final few minutes of the game when both men were sitting in the main stand at the King Power Stadium in Leicester. It is understood that Pearson snapped after the fan called him an ‘utter t***’. The manager admitted his part in the spat, saying after the game: ‘I replied to one idiot in the stands – if he doesn’t like what he sees, then don’t bother coming. ‘Maybe they ought to think about staying at home. We’ve worked hard and will continue to do so. I don’t like the commitment of my players being questioned.’ Pearson, a father of two, is under pressure following a winless streak stretching to nine games but his job is not believed to be at risk. He has a good relationship with the club’s Thai owner, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, and signed a three-year contract last June. But insiders said the club, which is investigating the incident, would not regard swearing at a fan within earshot of children as acceptable. Supporters appeared to agree and condemned Pearson’s actions. Cliff Ginetta, chairman of Leicester’s supporters club, said an apology was warranted. ‘He should put his hands up, admit he was out of order, apologise to the people and move on, that’s all everyone wants,’ he said. ‘We don’t want to play it out like a pantomime, we just want to get on with winning games. ‘People are worried and moaning but that’s football fans.’ One supporter wrote online: ‘Not a nice thing to say about a fan who contributes to wages. Managers should be a bit more diplomatic with irate fans, not abuse them.’ Another wrote: ‘Correct me if I’m wrong, the fan hardly abused him. If you said that to a customer at your work you’d be sacked irrespective of what they said to you.’ In a press conference yesterday, Pearson refused to apologise. He said: ‘I have had run-ins with fans in the past and in the heat of the moment these things happen and there won’t be any apology. Video footage has emerged showing the moment the manager of Leicester City told one of his own team’s supporters to ‘f*** off and die . ‘I am very keen to protect my players and myself and I’m more than happy to stick up for myself in that situation and, more importantly protect my players, that’s the root cause of the problem. ‘If people were offended by what happened in some ways that is regrettable – but there’s no need for me to apologise to someone of that ilk.’ A Leicester City spokesman said: ‘We are aware of an incident that took place during Tuesday night’s match and are looking into the matter to establish a full and accurate account of proceedings. ‘Once the facts have been determined and suitably corroborated, we will decide what next steps, if any, should be taken.’
Nigel Pearson exchanged abuse with fan during final minutes of game .
The Leicester City manager told supporter to 'f*** off and die'
The extraordinary incident happened as his side lost to Liverpool .
Pearson is under pressure after a winless streak of nine games .
The father-of-two admitted he replied 'to one idiot in the stand'
Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson made the jibe as his side lost to Liverpool . Even by the standards of the football terraces, it’s an inflammatory jibe. But video footage has emerged showing the manager of Leicester City told one of his own team’s supporters to ‘f*** off and die’. The extraordinary incident came during a match on Tuesday, which Nigel Pearson’s side lost to Liverpool. He exchanged abuse with the fan during the final few minutes of the game when both men were sitting in the main stand at the King Power Stadium in Leicester. It is understood that Pearson snapped after the fan called him an ‘utter t***’. The manager admitted his part in the spat, saying after the game: ‘I replied to one idiot in the stands – if he doesn’t like what he sees, then don’t bother coming. ‘Maybe they ought to think about staying at home. We’ve worked hard and will continue to do so. I don’t like the commitment of my players being questioned.’ Pearson, a father of two, is under pressure following a winless streak stretching to nine games but his job is not believed to be at risk. He has a good relationship with the club’s Thai owner, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, and signed a three-year contract last June. But insiders said the club, which is investigating the incident, would not regard swearing at a fan within earshot of children as acceptable. Supporters appeared to agree and condemned Pearson’s actions. Cliff Ginetta, chairman of Leicester’s supporters club, said an apology was warranted. ‘He should put his hands up, admit he was out of order, apologise to the people and move on, that’s all everyone wants,’ he said. ‘We don’t want to play it out like a pantomime, we just want to get on with winning games. ‘People are worried and moaning but that’s football fans.’ One supporter wrote online: ‘Not a nice thing to say about a fan who contributes to wages. Managers should be a bit more diplomatic with irate fans, not abuse them.’ Another wrote: ‘Correct me if I’m wrong, the fan hardly abused him. If you said that to a customer at your work you’d be sacked irrespective of what they said to you.’ In a press conference yesterday, Pearson refused to apologise. He said: ‘I have had run-ins with fans in the past and in the heat of the moment these things happen and there won’t be any apology. Video footage has emerged showing the moment the manager of Leicester City told one of his own team’s supporters to ‘f*** off and die . ‘I am very keen to protect my players and myself and I’m more than happy to stick up for myself in that situation and, more importantly protect my players, that’s the root cause of the problem. ‘If people were offended by what happened in some ways that is regrettable – but there’s no need for me to apologise to someone of that ilk.’ A Leicester City spokesman said: ‘We are aware of an incident that took place during Tuesday night’s match and are looking into the matter to establish a full and accurate account of proceedings. ‘Once the facts have been determined and suitably corroborated, we will decide what next steps, if any, should be taken.’
Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson made the jibe as his side lost to Liverpool . Even by the his own team’s supporters to ‘f*** off and die’. The extraordinary incident came during a match on Liverpool. He exchanged abuse with the fan during the spat, saying after the game: ‘I replied to one idiot in the stands – if he doesn’t like what questioned.’ Pearson, a father of two, is under pressure following a winless streak stretching to