Leeds United need Rafa Benitez appointment claims talkSPORT pundit with manager in running beside Javi Gracia
Danny Murphy believes that Leeds United “need” to “risk” Rafael Benitez on a short-term deal, with the manager now in the running.
The Champions League winner is on the latest shortlist drawn up by the Whites board, after the defeat at Everton under Michael Skubala on Saturday (18 February) left the club in the relegation zone, with ex-Watford boss the other option [90min, 20 February].
And it was reported by talkSPORT on Monday evening that the highly-experienced Spanish manager now has an interest in taking the job, so Murphy thinks it is the right option for the club.
Speaking live on talkSPORT, in a clip posted on the station’s Twitter account, the former Liverpool player said: “It’s a difficult one because they are so used to playing on the front foot it’s a complete contrast, although it’s not going particularly well what they are doing at the moment.
“On a short-term contract it could be worth the risk because he’s very good at getting a team organised and making you hard to beat, that’s for sure.
“My gut feeling is, the more you think about it, at the moment the way they’re playing and the results they’re getting I think that’s what they need.”
Emergency button
Benitez hasn’t showered himself in glory in recent years, particularly in a miserable six month stint at Everton last season, but it has got to the point where Leeds United have had to lower their expectations.
The 62-year-old is certainly not the manager he was in winning the Champions League at Liverpool, or even the Europa League at Chelsea, but he is at least an experienced Premier League operator.
There are fair questions to ask of him given how things ended at Goodison Park but putting the responsibility on Skubala’s shoulders for the rest of the campaign seems as unfair as it is risky.
Having waited too long to land Sean Dyche, and missed out on a number of successful candidates who would make sense long-term, options are now limited.
The fact that Benitez is available, and apparently wants the job, makes him a more viable route than the vast majority of the names considered so far.
None of the managers who can be brought in at this point are going to be world-beating options without questions hanging over them or they wouldn’t be possible to get, so Benitez has to be considered.
Whether he is the right answer is impossible to tell, but he is probably less of a wrong answer than what the board have so far landed on.
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