Brentford 4-1 Leicester: Ruud Van Nistelrooy watches on in horror as Kevin Schade's hattrick leaves Foxes clinging to safety just one point above the relegation zone

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Sorry, Ruud, it’s too late to back out now. The contract’s signed, you’ve posed for photos, said the usual platitudes about being excited for the challenge ahead. 

If it wasn’t already dawning on you that guiding Leicester City to safety might be a different kettle of fish to riding the crest of a wave with Manchester United for a few games, then it certainly will be now. 

That’s if guiding Leicester to safety is indeed their new boss Ruud van Nistelrooy’s remit. After all, Steve Cooper, a capable Premier League manager, was sacked with the Foxes outside the relegation zone. 

But even if the expectations on Van Nistelrooy are as low as conceivably possible, this will have been a disturbing watch for the Dutchman. He was in the stands here at the Gtech Community Stadium, and will have been utterly dismayed by what he saw. 

An extremely defensive Leicester side still looked all at the sea at the back. Despite taking the lead against the run of play, they soon trailed, and before long Brentford ran all over them. Kevin Schade scored a hat-trick, set up the other, and the home fans sang ‘You’re getting sacked in the morning’ to a manager yet to even take charge. 'You're not fit to wear the shirt,' was the away supporters' response to their own players. 

Van Nistelrooy cut a glum figure as the game wore on and Leicester collapsed. He will place more emphasis on his side’s showing against West Ham on Tuesday, his first game in charge. By then he will have had some time, albeit not much, with his new players on the training ground. But if this game was anything to go by, he will need to make the most of it. 

Ruud Van Nistelrooy watched on from the stands as the newly-appointed Leicester manager saw his side thrashed 4-1 by a rampant Brentford

Kevin Schade scored a stunning hattrick to condemn Leicester to a huge defeat on Saturday

Facundo Buonanotte initially opened the scoring to give Leicester a surprise lead at the Gtech

'We weren't good enough,' admitted Leicester defender Conor Coady. 'We're conceding too many goals, not creating enough chances. We're in a dark place at the moment. We've got to pull through it and look at ourselves in the mirror. The new manager is coming in tomorrow and we go from there.'

Leicester caretaker Ben Dawson found out he’d be taking the team in Cooper's stead while on a family trip to laser tag. 

All eyes were on a different sharpshooter though, and Van Nistelrooy arrived at the Gtech with Leicester owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, stopping for selfies with supporters on his way to the stands. That proved the highlight of his afternoon.

Leicester’s players came in for criticism — not least from Srivaddhanaprabha — after an ill-advised Christmas jolly-up in Copenhagen this week. Harry Winks was in that travelling party, quite literally, and spent much of it dressed as an Oompa Loompa. 

He missed out with a groin issue here — picked up in the loss to Chelsea, rather than his part in a moralising dance routine, rest assured.

Leicester switched to a back five for the first time this season, with two defensive midfielders sat front of it, too. They took the lead out of nowhere in the 21st minute. Jamie Vardy outmuscled Ethan Pinnock in the box, then teed up Facundo Buonanotte for a tap-in.

Their advantage lasted just a few minutes though. Yoane Wissa levelled after Schade broke down the left and found the Frenchman with a low cross.

And it quickly went from bad to worse for Dawson. Provider turned poacher as Schade found himself unmarked in the box and fired home. Leicester had gone from leading to trailing in just four minutes.

Yoanne Wissa led Brentford's comeback and equalised just minutes after the Foxes took the lead

Schade celebrated with his Brentford team-mates after scoring a brilliant hattrick

Leicester defender Wout Faes cuts a dejected figure as Brentford dominated the second-half

Schade had his second in first-half stoppage time as Brentford’s dominance finally got the scoreline it deserved. Mikkel Damsgaard played a lovely, incisive pass into the box and Schade beat Mads Hermansen from a tight angle.

It was the same story after half-time, and Schade completed his hat-trick in the 59th minute. Sent through by Nathan Collins, the German slotted past Hermansen for his first treble in senior football. 

'It was our best performance this season,' enthused Bees boss Thomas Frank. 'We looked so dangerous.'

Hermansen was called into action again as Brentford pushed for more despite making a raft of substitutions. 

But the damage was done — the challenge now for Van Nistelrooy is to see what he can salvage from the wreckage. This was a Ruud awakening for the task that lies ahead.