Sorry but I'm pretty bored and thought to start a constructive (I hope) debate on Leeds and your thoughts on your new manager and chairman. Ive picked up some quotes from Leeds supporters and wondered if you agreed with these assessments. This was orignally posted by a regular contributer on one of the Ipswich Town fans forums: Leeds United – Chaos Theory “Being a laughing stock makes a change from being hated”. While events are progressing smoothly at the Riverside, this is anything but the case down at Elland Road, where former Cagliari owner Massimo Cellino has taken ownership. “He’s superstitious about the colour purple, and the number 17 shirt is now retired”. Not just his beliefs, but Cellino’s comments, for example comparing coaches to watermelons – “You only know how good it is once you open it” – have given supporters plenty to think about. Massimo Cellino “We all know Cellino is as mad as a box of frogs, but we all genuinely believe that he wants to succeed and make Leeds great again”, “I get the feeling that he’s desperate to succeed at Leeds and will do all in his power to achieve that”, “He has inherited a mess which he seems intent on sorting out.” Cellino divides opinion sharply. He has his supporters: “We have an owner who understands football, having left behind an owner who didn’t have a clue. We have been a soft touch for too long and should make progress if Cellino gets the finances under control.” “Cellino talks about humility. Underneath the bravado, guitar playing and sound bites, he is humble enough to acknowledge that LUFC is a challenge. He needs to prove to himself and the fans that he is a good owner, and a bloke with something to prove is just dandy.” Cellino With equal weight, he has his critics: “This tit is a perfect replica of the idiot who destroyed Hearts in the not too distant past. Fifty bleeding years I have given this club support, but will never attend a game again while that moron owns the club. To say we are a laughing stock is being nice.” “I think he has shown himself to be divisive, reckless, nepotistic and egotistical. He has done very little since coming to make me think that his way of doing things will be a marked improvement from previous regimes.” “Cellino is running a vanity project and attempting to be a manager at a Championship club. We don’t have a European model with an experienced sporting director. What we have is a millionaire owner taking a hands-on role managing our first team with no direct experience in the game.” “There are two main opinions regarding Cellino amongst fans. There are those who think things can’t get any worse and are prepared to back him whatever path he takes, and there are those who see a dictator with a very high opinion of himself, at the centre of everything and taking the club down the wrong path.” Dave Hockaday “Words fail me”, “Please say this is a joke”. Many fans were happy to give the Italian owner the benefit of the doubt, but he alienated many neutrals and left them stunned by the appointment of the 56-year-old ex-Forest Green Rovers manager as first team coach last month. “And so it is that the worst management team in the history of the club is confirmed. Now let’s sit back and watch the train wreck begin”, “He seems to have gone for the cheapest option, and it will be us fans that suffer the most“, “We might need someone with non-league experience after all.” Hockaday “I just can’t understand this appointment at all. He isn’t young, so we can’t say that he is promising, and yet he has no other credentials”, ”Hockaday, accept you’re out of your depth. To even apply was disrespectful to Leeds United – the arrogance of the man.” “Hockaday will be running the training sessions, and he has a long track record of working with youth players”, “Forest Green were difficult to play against and hard to break down”, “I think he’s here for his no-nonsense approach. He’ll whip the squad into the fittest team in the league.” A small number of supporters have looked for positives, but the consensus is that he is cheap - a £150,000 salary has been mentioned several times – and dispensable. “I still can’t believe the guy’s our manager/head coach. I still find it hilarious.” No Expectations “I’d say that 15th (last season’s finishing position) is achievable this season no problem”, “Who the hell wants 15th place? Surely to God we deserve better than this”, “I think the players we have now will achieve at least 15th place if they try their hardest, unlike last year.” “This squad does not fill me with a lot of positivity for next season. I think we’ll finish below 14th, which isn’t good enough.” There has been no talk even of play-offs given how events have panned out since the end of the season. “If the season started now, we would be relegated.”
good post bud. I agree we have spent the last 10 years or so getting rinsed by everyone and anyone. Cellino won't have leaches at this football club and I like that, I also think he will realise Hockaday is a poor appointment and will sort it pretty sharpesh unless things go well. Cellino won't have the piss taken out of him and Leeds United football club by anyone hence managing to get 11 million for Ross.
Cheers Mate, I am interested to know what you guys think about your prospects for the season ahead. You are afterall one of the 'big boys' in this league who like us have been in the Premier League and who should really be challenging for promotion. Sadly for both of us it has been a long time since we were challenging at the top end of the table instead of fighting for mid table obscurity! We have got a great Manager in Mick McCarthy and we now have a sense that things are turning around for us, but then I look at you guys, and I think that you still have much further to go in turning things around.
I have absolutely no idea but I believe Cellino has high expectations so would like to think top 10. if the championship is anything like last season we could finish anywhere lol if we sign Viviani and another 4 which Cellino is quoted as saying we will then we could get a good squad together. Silvestri and Viviani are far superior signings to what I've seen in the previous seasons we have had in this league
Happy with the deadwood he's got rid of so far, and good to see he's attempting to get the finances in order. As for the new signings, never heard of them, so the jury's out on that. The most worrying thing for me, and something I still can't get my head round, is the appointment of Hockaday. The best thing about him is he's cheap. Signs that there's a togetherness building within the squad and no big time primadonnas. The whole thing will either be an outstanding success or bomb badly, nothing in between.
The one thing we can safely say about Leeds is that there is always 'nothing in between'! It must be like going on one hell of a roller coaster ride every season, not knowing what you will see from week to week! One week you're brilliant and then the next you play total garbage it must drive you all bloody nuts!
This basically sums up my feelings And to answer your original question rather than tip toe around it. I think alot of fans are already sold on Cellino based on what he is saying Personally, I'm yet to see him do anything fantastic. He has appointed a really poor candidate imo. who seems like he is well out of his depth but now we'll just have to wait and see. Cellino is making ALL of the signings which I don't like as well, I like the manager to know what he wants and how he wants to shape his team. Cellino is not a manager and certainly doesn't know what it takes to get out of the championship, again we'll have to wait and see what happens with these signings. Some seem promising but alot seem like second rate players from the italian leagues. The way he is running the club also makes it seem we are in deep financial mess which doesn't fill me with a whole lot of confidence so potential signings and current players might not be too happy either. He's made a lot of promises which if he does stick to will help this club in a huge huge way so yet again we'll have to wait and see on that as well. Currently, as far as known quality within the squad we are relegation material and no better. Many signings still need to be made and we are getting closer. A lot of fans seem optimistic about our chances but I personally need to see some solid proof we are on the right track.
We were. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/26938425 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/26784548
Great Post Josh... I think the key danger is that because you have an unknown manager, surely this will make it harder to attract the better quality players, eventhough you have the money to spend! No doubting that you have a Chairman who is ambitious and wont take any crap but appointing a complete unknown as manager of a big club is either going to turn out to be an Act of Genius or a diabolical mistake!
Sean Dyche wasn't exactly a household name when he took over at Burnley. I'm not even sure he is now.
But realistically closing the training ground for a month and forcing players to bring in packed lunches and washing their own kit and so on isn't saving that much money in the grand scheme of things.
Yes he was, anyone in the game knew that Dyche knew what he was doing. He did well at watford for the small amount of time he was there and I think you'll find a lot of Watford fans were quite annoyed when he was sacked when the new owners came in and had to put in "their man".
How long are you willing to give the new manager if results dont go well? There is of course the danger that Cellino may be too proud to accept that his first appointment is a mistake and will stick by him no matter!
