The Italian lost his job nine months after leading Leicester to a fairy-tale Premier League triumph and newspaper reports have suggested that senior players were consulted over his departure.
Under his successor Craig Shakespeare, Leicester won six matches in a row immediately after his exit – but Ranieri argued there were other factors behind the poor form that had left the champions flirting with relegation.
When asked on Monday Night Football about reports that the players were involved in his sacking, Ranieri replied: “No, I can’t believe it.
“The players maybe don’t give their maximum because there are other problems.
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“Other problems could be that when they were here before they earned a little less, and after that they earned double or triple.
“Maybe when you were safe in the last match and restart the season, you are so concentrated to be solid and strong. We started very well the year before.
“Then when you come back in pre-season when you have won the title, you go around the world. You go to America to play against big teams for the first time in your life. The situation is totally different.
“I cannot believe that my players killed me. No, no, no.”
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Ranieri spoke openly about his exit for the first time during his appearance with David Jones and Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports.
And while he insisted his players were not behind his sacking, he indicated there were others at the club who were against him, but refused to say who they were.
“I listened to a lot of stories about this,” Ranieri added.
“Maybe it could be somebody behind me, but also the little problem I had the year before and we won the title.
“Maybe these people, this year, when we lose they push a little more. That’s it.
“I don’t want to tell. I am a serious man, a loyal man. What I have to say, I say face-to-face.”
Ranieri also expressed frustration that he was sacked the day after a spirited 2-1 defeat at Sevilla in the Champions League, a result Ranieri thought would turn their season around.
However, he says he is happy to see the club winning matches again after struggling to cope with the pressure of being champions earlier in the campaign.
“Of course it wasn’t easy,” Ranieri said.
“I knew that the second year was totally different, because when you have won the title, the players have to understand what happened, must reset their mind, because it’s not easy. We are not a team that are used to staying at the top and fighting for the title.
“We were a little team with some players used to playing in the Premier League and there was an explosion. You won the title… amazing.
“Then we had to stay calm. I believe that sooner or later we would switch on.
Claudio Ranieri responds to Jamie Carragher’s question ‘How do you feel about Leicester’s new run of form?’
“I believe our turning point was the Sevilla match. I saw in the second half everyone was together again, fighting.”
He added: “I am very, very happy to see my players play in the system and in everything I taught them. They play the same.
“I think next season if the players remain the same they’ll continue to play the same. Shakespeare was very, very intelligent to follow that way.”
