George Overhill

Thu 23 February 2023 19:10, UK

Leeds United will have had to go to the FA and request an exemptions panel to convince authorities that Javi Gracia should be awarded a work permit, Phil Hay reports.

The former Watford boss is still not certain to be in charge of the bottom-of-the-table clash between the Whites and Southampton on Saturday (25 February) despite being appointed on Tuesday, due to his not automatically qualifying to work in England.

Thanks to Brexit-related rules the Spaniard’s recent spell winning a title with Al Sadd in Qatar doesn’t contribute towards getting him a permit, and despite other jobs in Europe in the previous five years he doesn’t meet the threshold of two uninterrupted years at a high enough level, or three years total, so Leeds United have had to request a panel to get over the latest hurdle.

Speaking on The Phil Hay Show on Thursday (23 February, 9min 10sec) Hay said: “You do have to demonstrate that the coach you’re bringing is going to contribute in a way somebody British wouldn’t be able to do.

“I don’t see them having a problem on that front because he has a background at Watford and has been at Valencia, Malaga and Rubin Kazan, a high enough level generally, and I think would be able to get the supporting statements you need for these things to convince an exemptions panel it should be granted.

“But it means it doesn’t happen automatically and takes a bit of time.“

He went on: “A panel is put together as and when one is requested. The club has to request one.

“What will have happened will be that they will see through the criteria that Gracia doesn’t automatically qualify so they go to the FA and they ask for a panel, usually a three-man panel, and the FA will usually have football people who will join that panel and make the decision.”

Unhelpful

Since the Whites have apparently been in contact with Gracia since shortly after Jesse Marsch was sacked on 6 February, this is another issue that should have been foreseen.

It appears unlikely that he will actually be denied the opportunity to take the reins at Elland Road, although that would be typical of how things have gone lately.

But the prospect of another key clash with a relegation rival going by without the new boss in place, when he has been available the whole time the board was failing to coax other options out of their current jobs, is dispiriting for the supporters.

Perhaps everything goes through on Friday and the mere presence on the touchline of the 52-year-old lifts the players to a win, despite a lack of time on the training ground together, or maybe Michael Skubala can react to the failings of the Everton loss to mastermind a result himself.

But whoever is in charge for the next game will certainly not have been put in the best position to take a vital three points.

An important process with many moving parts like appointing a manager midseason is no doubt complicated and difficult to pull off, but that is why it is bemusing that the board decided to start from scratch after sacking Marsch.

It feels like most of the negative developments since then could have been avoided with some foresight, and an uphill battle has since become even steeper now that the Whites are 19th in the table.

The need for Gracia to be successful is all the more pressing now compared to just a few weeks ago when the process began.

In other Leeds United news, despite the managerial mayhem the club have got themselves to the front of the queue for a sought-after summer signing.