“Nottingham Forest was a bigger success story than ours, because they came from the second division, won the league title then two European titles in succession”, the 64-year-old tactician told Gazetta dello Sport.
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The award was founded in 2011 to honor Bearzot, the 1982 World Cup-winning coach who died in 2010.
“We will try everything that we can to build the team and to secure the same group of players and add some quality”, Aiyawatt added.
“I was told I was too small, that I was not ready for the physicality of scholarship”, he said.
But for the moment, Ranieri is staying put as he believes Leicester’s “fairytale of beating the Premier League giants” could be extended to next season’s Champions League.
Ranieri experienced mixed fortunes with Chelsea and Valencia, and Italian clubs including Juventus, Roma, Parma and Inter Milan, also enduring a forgettable spell as the head coach of Greece. I think in our dressing room, that is the main thing that has got us where we are.
“We’ve got ourselves into this situation playing that way, so why change it?”
Vardy’s remarkable rise this season recently saw him voted Football Writers’ Player of the Year, but he knows Leicester owe their success to more than just his predatory instincts. I love his character and the way he talks.
And there are now talks over making a film about Leicester’s title win.
Leicester’s next challenge will be to match Forest’s success, by going on to upset the apple cart again, by claiming the Champions League crown next season. “We are just concentrating on the games”.
Carlo Ancelotti won in 2014 after leading Real Madrid to their 10th European Cup win.
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Speaking about bonuses that may have been given to the Leicester players for winning the title, Aiyawatt said: “The players deserve as in the contract”.
