LEICESTER, England (AP) " Already under scrutiny for grabbing a player by the neck in a touchline confrontation, the manager of last-place Premier League team Leicester failed to clear up intense speculation that he had been fired then reinstated by the club's Thai owners.
The normally unflappable Nigel Pearson struggled Monday to bat away a barrage of questions about his future, arising from a confusing Sunday night when widespread reports that he had been dismissed were followed " four hours later " by a club statement saying he was still manager.
Pearson said he had "conversations" with the club's board but refused to divulge any more details. His entire focus, he said, was on Tuesday's Premier League match at Arsenal.
"I understand the interest and you wanting to ask questions," Pearson said at a news conference attended by more members of the media than usual at Leicester's Kingpower Stadium. "But I have loyalties to the people I work for, my staff and the players, which really is more important to me than trying to clarify things for a story which was based on speculation."
Pearson said he had had an "interesting Sunday," but would not explain further,