Phil Hay predicts ‘major week’ at Leeds United, expects action on manager hunt

Phil Hay is predicting a “major week” at Elland Road as Leeds United potentially look at next steps in their managerial hunt.

The Whites sacked Jesse Marsch (6 February) and have so far failed to hire a replacement, leaving Michael Skubala in charge of their last three games and earning just one point.

With the club now in the relegation zone though and facing fellow strugglers Southampton next, Hay said on the Phil Hay Show (20 February, 29:35) that he is now expecting a “major week” at the club with it now looking unlikely that this Skubala experiment will be successful.

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“I do wonder,” he said. “I think the Everton result without any doubt has put a lot of pressure on this Skubala experiment and the idea that he can carry this forward.

“As ever, as it did last week, right from the point where Marsch was sacked, it will depend on who is out there and what they can do, who the options are. But I think sitting here now, it would surprise me a little bit if they were content or willing to go through this week without any action.

“It’s going to be a major week for the club. Major, major week.”

Major

This is the type of approach that should have been used two weeks ago, when the initial decision to sack Jesse Marsch was made.

It was known then that a replacement was needed, and while the club missed out on their top targets, they should never have stopped looking for the next boss as throwing Skubala into the deep end just wasn’t fair on him.

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But on top of that, it was far too big of a step up for him to compete in these circumstances and the players haven’t been performing well enough.

A new man in charge, whether it be until the end of the season or beyond is needed so that it’s clear what is happening and everyone can focus on survival.

It’s been poor so far in all the aftermath since Marsch’s sacking from the club, and defeat to Southampton could potentially make it too big a mountain to climb, so it’s no shock this is the case.

In other Leeds United news, click here to see breaking, around-the-clock updates on Leeds’ search for a new manager in our interactive live blog.

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