Leeds United now push for new permanent manager within days after Everton defeat as Javi Gracia talks emerge – Phil Hay
Leeds United are pushing to get a new permanent manager appointed before the next game against Southampton with Javi Gracia now an option, Phil Hay reports.
The Whites have lurched into crisis following the sacking of Jesse Marsch on 6 February, having missed out on a host of their preferred options, leaving Michael Skubala in charge for the crucial relegation six-pointer at Everton on Saturday (28 February).
A limp 1-0 defeat has sparked the board into renewed action, despite Hay writing in The Athletic on Sunday that their “ideal” scenario was now to let the under-21s boss take them through to the summer.
But with the club now in the relegation zone Fabrizio Romano reported earlier on Monday that former Watford boss Gracia is now in talks to take over, and Hay has highlighted the significance of the previous result on hopes for a quick appointment with the second of two key matches against fellow strugglers fast approaching.
Posting on Twitter on Monday he wrote: “Club’s search being renewed after Saturday’s defeat to Everton. Southampton game weighing heavily.”
In the accompanying story in The Athletic it states that despite no comment from either side: “The club look set to push for the permanent appointment of a new head coach before the Southampton clash”.
Panic stations
It was unlikely that Skubala would have been a viable option until the end of the year even after the lift he provided for the trip to Old Trafford in the first of back-to-back meetings with Manchester United.
He should never have been put in the position for more than a game or two in an emergency, and the fact that he is three matches and counting into his temporary tenure shows what a mess the board have made of the situation.
Whatever happens now, and whoever does or doesn’t come in, it is clear for all to see that the Leeds United hierarchy are making it up on the fly.
If they were going to sack Marsch they had to have a plan in place, but despite a unique season that provided a huge six-week opportunity through November and December to either make the change then or work out a contingency, they removed him in February and started the replacement process from scratch.
Andrea Radrizzani genuinely seems to have expected it to be a simple appointment within a couple of days based on his early Twitter enthusiasm, but it was asking to be left high and dry by the likes of Carlos Corberan and Andoni Iraola if there wasn’t at least tacit agreement ahead of time.
Skubala did better than expected for two games against Erik ten Hag, so he suddenly became a viable option when he never should have been in the equation.
The wheels duly fell off at Goodison Park and now suddenly Gracia is in the running. But he was available last week so if there weren’t talks then he must be so far down the list of priorities that he is on a hiding to nothing if he gets the job.
He finished what Xavi started and won a league title in Qatar with Al Sadd, and he has taken Watford to the FA Cup final, meaning he has more credentials than Skubala so why wasn’t he being considered prior to Everton?
Any semblance of success in the rest of the campaign is clearly going to be more by accident than design, and unfortunately the prospect of that currently seems remote either way.
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