His voice trembling with emotion, the Leicester manager recalled how he was winding down in his office with friends and family following Saturday’s 1-1 draw with West Ham when he got news of the helicopter crash.
Goalkeeping coach Mike Stowell came into the room and solemnly delivered the tragic news which rocked the football world.
Puel’s blood ran cold as the scale of the incident became apparent — only a couple of hundred yards away the chopper had gone down and turned into a fireball, with reports no one was rescued from the burning wreckage.
Yesterday, Puel mirrored the bravery, dignity and class which has coursed through Leicester and its cherished football club since those awful events as he shared his grief with a hushed but packed media room.
The Frenchman read from hand-written notes to convey his deep sorrow following “one of the hardest weeks in the history of this football club” and vowed to honour Khun Vichai’s memory and “continue the legacy he built”.
Puel revealed how close he was to the club owner who had taken him to polo matches, Royal Ascot — where he introduced him to royalty — and even insisted on his manager borrowing his luxury boat for a short break in the French Riviera town of Antibes.
However, first he relived those fateful moments when his world fell apart only an hour or so after a run-of-the-mill football match.
Puel revealed: “I was in my office in the stadium with my family and friends and all my staff when Mike came in and gave me the news.
“Of course, we were devastated. We could not understand what had happened.
“It was not possible to learn this news. We remained together for a long time, without it being possible to share words. It was silence.”
Puel says the only player he saw on Saturday night after news of the tragedy broke was his skipper on the day and the Foxes’ second-longest serving star Kasper Schmeichel, who witnessed the blazing wreckage for himself.
The Dane shed tears at the scene but Puel distanced himself from reports that the goalie had been directly involved in any rescue attempt.
Puel explained: “Kasper was the only player who remained a long time in the stadium after the game, so he experienced the situation and he saw a lot of things.
“I don’t want to give all the details. Bad moments.
“Kasper, like all the players, has been involved in many events with the chairman in the past. They are all devastated.”
Puel said Srivaddhanaprabha’s ability to create a football family at Leicester, rather than just a football team, helped the club, players and city mourn their huge loss.
The players were given Sunday off, then on Monday the first tentative steps towards some sort of a recovery process began, as Schmeichel, long-serving physio Dave Rennie and Puel made emotive speeches.
Puel said: “The first day was just about sharing our sorrow.
“It was a long day. But it was important to share all this and listen to all people, my staff, players, everyone working at the club.”
On Tuesday, it was time for the players to start getting their heads around football again and Puel admits he was moved by his squad’s desire to honour the late chairman and his family.
Puel revealed: “I asked the players whether they wanted to train in the gym, go out on the pitch, to get their opinion, their feelings.
“So it was a fantastic feeling seeing all my players on the pitch.
“I have 27 players in the squad and all of them together trained and gave their best.
"They gave 100 per cent just to remember and honour the chairman. It was a fantastic feeling of togetherness.”
It was that sense of family and togetherness Puel kept returning to as he answered questions for 57 emotionally-charged minutes, which must have left him drained.
Outside, fans continued to queue for several minutes to enter a small marquee and sign a book of condolence for Vichai.
Poignantly, the crew of firemen who attended the scene on Saturday arrived to pay their respects, helmets clutched by their side, observing the calm after the chaos of last week’s inferno.
Claudio Ranieri was a high- profile visitor along with another former manager Nigel Pearson.
Meanwhile, the man currently in charge rose to the occasion, showing character and leadership his critics have often doubted he possessed.
Puel was charged by Srivaddhanaprabha with changing the face of Leicester City and introducing the next generation of club heroes, such as Ben Chilwell, James Maddison, Demarai Gray and Harry Maguire.
It does not happen overnight and the former Southampton manager has been written off several times and probably read on numerous occasions about how he was about to be axed.
Yesterday he was truly inspirational, perfectly capturing the mood of the club and the city of Leicester — fiercely determined to honour the club’s much-loved owner.
As he recounted his favourite personal memories of Vichai, it became clear the pair were far closer than many outside of the Thai owner’s inner circle would ever have imagined.
Puel said: “It’s the hardest moment of my life and I am devastated. But my staff and my players will be strong in our sorrow, like Top (Vichai’s son) and his mother.
“I did not see Vichai after the game, I saw him before the game. He was enjoying himself, he was happy, smiling, we discussed a lot of things. It was a pleasure.
“I could never imagine the thing that occurred afterwards.
“My favourite memories will be his spirit, his kindness in all situations. He wanted to please all the time.
"He was generous and warm. He gave rewards because he wanted people to be happy around him all the time.
“He invited me often to Ascot races and to private polo events. I met Prince William on one occasion and Prince Harry.
“He shared all his things with people and staff and players. It was fantastic. He loaned his boat to me for three days to take my family on holiday.
“There were meals shared in fantastic restaurants, it was crazy.
“We shared some fantastic moments and when we talked, only a little was about football. He wanted to discuss his family.
“He loved having all his family around him. He put us in their family and that was a special thing about him.
“All the time he wanted to please all the people around him. This is the image I want to keep of him.”
Source: Read Full Article