Phil Hay shares Leeds United fate of Chris Armas after Jesse Marsch ally is ignored in Javi Gracia announcement
Chris Armas is still with Leeds United despite being overlooked in the club’s announcement that Javi Gracia and his backroom staff have arrived, Phil Hay reports.
The American had been part of the caretaker coaching team alongside Michael Skubala and Paco Gallardo for the past three games, having only arrived in January to join former teammate and colleague Jesse Marsch before he was sacked.
The Whites belatedly announced that replacement boss Gracia and his assistants Zigor Aranalde, Mikel Antia and Juan Jose Solla had been granted work permits, just minutes before the Friday (24 February) press conference ahead of Saturday’s game with Southampton.
Skubala’s elevation to the first team staff and Gallardo replacing him as under-21s boss were both contained in the club’s statement, but there was no mention of 50-year-old Armas, although Hay reports he remains at Elland Road.
Reporting on Twitter in the wake of the Gracia announcement on Friday The Athletic journalist wrote: “Paco Gallardo now taking the U21s. No mention of Chris Armas in the statement but he’s still with the club.”
Limbo
The Leeds United journey for Armas is one of the more bewildering aspects of a process that hasn’t been short of baffling elements.
His arrival on 25 January appeared to signify Marsch’s job was safe as his “confidant” [The Athletic, 7 February] had been brought in to provide support.
But less than two weeks later his compatriot was gone following the loss to Nottingham Forest, and yet the former Manchester United coach was kept on and put in joint-charge of the first-team while the hierarchy struggled to appoint a replacement.
Now that Gracia has finally been confirmed the Spaniard has brought in key members of his own staff, and the club have overlooked Armas’ presence in running through the main coaching moves, but apparently he is still there.
He may be wondering what he is doing with the Whites now that he has been through such a chaotic introduction to the club, and his long-term Leeds United future is difficult to discern.
But against the odds he remains and it appears the decision-makers are determined to find a role for him having made the surprising decision to keep him after dispensing with the services of the man he appeared specifically to appointed to support.
In other Leeds United news, the club is now eyeing a golden opportunity to sign a 140-goal striker in the summer.