“There’s hope there, the spirit is there in the team, but today is a big blow,” Van Nistelrooy said.
Ruud van Nistelrooy admitted Leicester’s 2-0 defeat against Crystal Palace on Wednesday was the lowest moment of his reign at the relegation-threatened club.
Van Nistelrooy’s side suffered a sixth consecutive loss as they missed a host of chances at the King Power Stadium before Jean-Philippe Mateta and Marc Guehi netted for Palace.
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Second-bottom Leicester are two points from safety after winning just three of their first 21 league games this season.
“There’s hope there, the spirit is there in the team, but today is a big blow,” Van Nistelrooy said.
“It was I think the lowest that we’ve felt so far in my spell because today we had high hopes of proving ourselves with points and a performance.”
Former Manchester United striker Van Nistelrooy, who served as the Old Trafford club’s interim boss prior to Ruben Amorim’s appointment in November, was hired by Leicester following Steve Cooper’s sacking.
But the former PSV Eindhoven boss has so far failed to spark a Leicester revival in their first season back in the Premier League.
Insisting Leicester can still avoid a quick return to the Championship, Van Nistelrooy said: “We kept spirits up after five losses and we will do it after today’s loss.
“These games are decided in both final thirds. We are able to create but we have to start finishing them.
“We are doing a lot well but in the key moments, we are not there to pull the trigger.”
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Leicester were booed off at the final whistle, but Van Nistelrooy refused to accept the pressure was already mounting on him.
“I felt the support today was there. It’s up to us to turn this negative cycle around and to bring hope back into the fans’ hearts and minds,” he said.
