Leeds head coach is under serious threat of losing his job with Sam Allardyce in the frame to take over. Leeds lost 4-1 at Bournemouth on Sunday and are outside the transfer zone on the objective distinction. Only two and a half months have passed since Javi Gracia assumed control; ex-Britain manager Sam Allardyce arranged to supplant him; Victor Orta, the director of football for Leeds, left on Tuesday morning. Leeds United head coach Javi Gracia’s position is in serious jeopardy, and Sam Allardyce is in the running to take over until the end of the season. Allardyce, a former England manager who left West Brom in May 2021, is set to make a surprise return to football to try to keep Leeds from being relegated from the Premier League with only four games left in the season.
Leeds head coach under serious threat of losing his job
In the meantime, Victor Orta, the director of football for Leeds, has left the team, beginning what looks to be a dramatic day in West Yorkshire. The Spaniard took up the post at Elland Street in 2017 and assisted Leeds with making their hotly anticipated return to the Chief Association three years after the fact.
Leeds owner Andrea Radrizzani said of his departure: “I am deeply saddened by the way that this chapter closes as Victor has been responsible for some of the best moments of my time as owner of Leeds United and I thank him and his people for all they have done in the past six years.
“However, it is clear that it is time to change direction and therefore we have agreed that Victor will leave the club”.
“I understand supporters are hurt and upset, but now is a time for unity.
“We have four cup finals left to play this season and, working together, I believe we can survive.”
Following Monday night’s 2-2 draw between Leicester and Everton, who are also struggling with relegation, Leeds suffered a 4-1 defeat at Bournemouth. As a result, they are now only one goal away from the drop zone. In a run that has seen them fall to 5-1, 6-1, and 4-1 defeats to Crystal Palace, Liverpool, and Bournemouth, respectively, Leeds has lost four of their last five games. Manager Gracia currently faces the sack after only over two months in control, meaning Allardyce could turn into the club’s fourth lead trainer of the time. The 68-year-old would face a challenging schedule that includes a live appearance at leaders Manchester City, home games against Newcastle and Tottenham, and a trip to West Ham. After allowing 23 goals in April, which set a new Premier League record for goals against in a single month, Leeds’ recent performances have enraged fans.
On Sunday night fans’ gathering the Leeds Joined Allies Warning Board gave a statement of disapproval to both the club’s board and lead trainer Gracia.
Leeds’ players were likewise compelled to give an assertion to apologize for Sunday’s presentation at Bournemouth and for overlooking fans as they left the group’s lodging. Players were seen failing to acknowledge a group of supporters, including a young boy, in the hotel lobby in a video that was shared on social media following the defeat, which had plunged them into deep relegation trouble. Allardyce, a former manager of Bolton, Blackburn, and West Ham, would be a good fit for Leeds, according to Jamie Carragher. When Leeds might fire Gracia, he told Monday Night Football: Despite the fact that we had never considered this a possibility in our league, the stakes are so high that I think I could probably comprehend it.
“There is such an ill feeling at the club right now in terms of the connection between him and the supporters. They’re not happy. They showed that frustration to him at Bournemouth.”
He added: “I don’t think Sam Allardyce has ever come in this late. He’s normally come in with a January transfer window to bring his own players in and have time to change it.
“But I think it would be a decent appointment. Whether the crowd get behind it, I’m not so sure. I don’t know how Leeds supporters would react to Sam Allardyce.
“But in terms of trying to make them more solid and better defensively, there’s probably no one better out there.”
Carragher is of the opinion that a late managerial change may be their only chance of achieving the results they need to remain in the top division with difficult remaining schedules, including a trip to leaders Manchester City and home games against Newcastle and Tottenham.
“They’ve got to try to create some sort of feel-good factor in the home games they’ve got, to bring some kind of energy and a performance to get them over the line, so I would not be surprised at all if they made that change,” he said.
“It’s very difficult to instill that [a clear style of play]. The only thing I believe the board and hierarchy will be thinking is, ‘Can we make Elland Road a fortress in these last couple of games at home?’
“I think that’s the only thing they can do. Bring someone in where it becomes a tough game for the teams going there, where there’s an atmosphere, there’s an energy, because right now that has vanished completely.”