Leeds United chairman Andrea Radrizzani hits out at ‘keyboard cowards’ amid criticism of his ownership
Andrea Radrizzani says he has a “great” relationship with the Leeds United fans and has dismissed criticism of his ownership as coming from “keyboard cowards”.
The Whites chairman drew the ire of some sections of the support when he Tweeted on 7 February, the day after sacking Jesse Marsch, that a new manager could be in place that night or the following morning, with it eventually being another two weeks and various dead ends before Javi Gracia was appointed.
He responded to one angry message on 9 February, posting on Twitter: “Relax man, enjoy your freedom”. But he has now dismissed negative attention and suggested in person the situation is very different.
Asked in an interview with DAZN, where Radrizzani recently sold his company Eleven, about his relationship with the Whites supporters he said, as per Tutto Mercato Web: “Great. When I’m there I feel a lot of love, on social instead… But it’s only a small minority of keyboard cowards as I call them”.
Overeager
Radrizzani might be right that he gets a better reaction in person but as with other members of the board at Leeds United games he can’t help but notice the discontent among the fanbase.
He perhaps doesn’t exhibit some of the smugness of Angus Kinnear in the programme notes or the attention-grabbing displays of passion that Victor Orta does, but he is no stranger to putting his foot in it on social media.
The Italian also was embarrassed in his welcome for Bamba Dieng on deadline day of the summer transfer window, in a move that infamously never happened, and led to Willy Gnonto bailing out the failure to sign a senior forward.
Perhaps Radrizzani’s naivety or his over-excitement at times where he is communicating to the supporters comes from a good place, but when he is the man who is supposed to be in charge of the operation it doesn’t inspire much confidence in the way things are being run.
If the club was flying high and challenging for trophies nobody would mind but having sacked the much-loved Marcelo Bielsa, and with the club in the second of consecutive relegation battles, it is clear that plans either haven’t worked or were wrong in the first place.
The late-window scramble in the summer and the circus of a manager hunt through February have helped contribute to a luck of trust, and plenty of supporters are now just waiting for the 49ers era to begin in full.
In other Leeds United news, the owner has revealed that the club proposed to swap a current squad member out in a collapsed deadline day move.
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