Leeds United look to put Victor Orta behind them after new announcement
Leeds United are looking to put former director of football Victor Orta behind them following a new announcement.
The Whites advertised on their website on Monday (25 September) that they are looking to appoint a head of recruitment at Elland Road.
The new transfer chief will look to shape the club’s recruitment philosophy as 49ers Enterprises aims to ensure the work of the old administration – in particular Orta – is well and truly a thing of the past.
The Spaniard’s tenure at Leeds wasn’t all bad, given that he played an integral role in helping take them from mid-table obscurity in the Championship to finishing in the top half of the Premier League.
But his decisions towards the end of his time as director of football will be what he’s most remembered for after he was sacked on 2 May.
Unfortunately for the Whites, it was already too late by that point and the 44-year-old’s mistakes played a significant part in the club suffering relegation last season.
Alongside sacking Marcelo Bielsa without seemingly having much of a plan over who his long-term successor would be, Orta sanctioned several transfers that made little to no sense for the club.
There was the odd success story, such as Brazilian winger Raphinha, but then there was the likes of French forward Jean-Kevin Augustin, who played just 48 minutes of football in West Yorkshire after arriving from RB Leipzig in 2020.
The former chief also agreed to include relegation clauses in several of the recent signings’ contracts, which led to a number of the big-money additions leaving on loan or for very little during the last transfer window.
The new announcement looks to be putting that shoddy business behind Leeds in a bid to work in a more strategic fashion, while creating a plan for future success.
The responsibilities for the new transfer boss appear to be very extensive, with a list of 15 bullet points included on the advertisement post, as well as a further 14 skills required to be considered for the job.
They will be in charge of managing the recruitment budget and scouting expenses, while also working closely with manager Daniel Farke and technical director Gretar Steinsson to identify potential signings.
This is a much more modern approach for the Whites to take compared to the way the previous administration worked, as Orta appeared to have relative free rein to bring in who he wanted – something former owner Andrea Radrizzani will probably deeply regret now.
While steps in the right director have already been taken since 49ers Enterprises took over, this is a move that should be well received by all those associated with the Whites as they aim to make the club more sustainable on and off the pitch over the next few years.
In other Leeds United news, a pundit has raved about one player’s “amazing” performance against Watford.