Desperation

Any team that cycles through three or more managers in a single season clearly has issues, ask Southampton.

Leeds United clearly have more than most though. The man they have turned too in their fight against relegation this season is none other than disgraced ex-England manager Sam Allardyce.

This is the manager sacked by the FA mere 67 days after taking over in the England dugout, after he was caught taking money to help businessmen skirt FA rules on third party ownership of players.

I understand that Leeds last experience of relegation from the Premier League, at the end of the 2003/04 season, was extremely traumatic for the club. Dropping to the depths of League One would be hellish for any team that sees themselves as one of the biggest clubs in the nation – especially as it took till the 2020/21 season for them to return the top tier.

Turning to a manager previously mired in so much controversy, on the eve of a duo of games which are in all probability unwinnable anyway, who will need time to affect the team’s performances stinks of desperation.

That unwinnable duo of games are away to Manchester City, building up their usual end of the season invincibility, and at home to Newcastle United. There are very few managers in the world that could steer this Leeds team to more than a single point with that run and Sam Allardyce isn’t one of them.

I may be wrong about that, but it still feels like a moon-shot from a board grasping for anything that will avert disaster.