Who will be Leeds United’s Next Head Coach?
The markets are ever changing on who will be the head coach at Elland Road. We take a look at the current top four candidates.
The next Head Coach at Elland Road is still to be decided… on 3 June… and since Garry Monk surprise departure, the rumour mill has been swirling. We’ve all expressed our opinions on who we think should take the team forward on social media, but the options seem to be limitless.
So, here at “Nowt For Second,” we felt we would take a quick look at the current top four favorites for the job and see who we think should take the reigns of our promotion-seeking club.
Pep Clotet
The Assistant Manager is often not given the credit they truly deserve. When Gus Poyet was the assistant manager at Leeds, we played some good football and it wasn’t until he left the club that it became evident he was the tactician behind the team.
I am not comparing Garry Monk to Dennis Wise. Monk is a different managerial realm entirely than Wise. However, Pep has also had a vast impact of the current team, just as much as Monk, and was heavily involved in signing the players who got us to 75 points.
Teams that achieve and sustain success have a long-term plan that they adhere to, and we need to remember what we achieved last year. But we also need to improve on last season to be in promotion contention, from the first game till the last.
Pep knows the team and the club and will be aware of the ideas that he, Monk, and the rest of the management team were planning on implementing going forward. Out of the likely candidates, Clotet is my preferred — he’s a young, quality coach with vast scouting knowledge and someone who already has affection for the club.
He deserves his chance to shine.
Juande Ramos
Ramos has appeared out of nowhere and looks like a real possibility to take the job. His previous history in English football is well documented after an indifferent time at Spurs.
However, he has in the past managed at clubs like Real Madrid and Malaga. He has vast experience and has won numerous trophies, which is more than the other coaches listed… however, he has none in the last 10 years.
Ramos does like to play a 4–2–3–1 formation and does prefer a defensive mindset. Ramos’s philosophy mimics Monks, so the players should be able to adapt quicker to Ramos than maybe they would to a more direct Ranieri.
I personally don’t think Ramos is the right man. We need to have a long term plan and Ramos has changed teams at regular intervals over the few years with minimal to show for it. However, his experience could be beneficial as we go forward maybe in a different role at Elland Road.
Aitor Karanka
Aitor had been the bookies’ favorite since Monk left: the appointment of Victor Orta as Director of Football earlier in the week had us all thinking Karanka was our man. However, reports are now suggesting otherwise, that he’s not the first choice for Leeds.
However, if Karanka is given the job, is he the right man to take Leeds forward? Well, the best way to judge a coach/manager is his previous record, and in Karanka’s case that is pretty good, especially in the Championship. He finished 4th and 2nd retrospectively in his first seasons at Middlesbrough.
His footballing philosophy has been questioned by some fans, but last season under Garry Monk, we didn’t play attractive football either, and all of us were devastated last week when he left.
The Championship is a difficult, unforgiving league as we’ve all experienced over the years and, for as much I love to watch free-flowing sexy football, the Championship is not a sexy league. If winning 1–0 every week playing unattractive football means we get to the Premier League, then I am more than happy with that. Karanka’s record in the league is up there with the best so I don’t believe his appointment would be a negative.
Claudio Ranieri
The idea that Ranieri has even been suggested as a possible candidate is testament to where we have gotten as a club during Garry Monk’s tenure. Ranieri managerial record is amazing and he has numerous trophies during his career.
Also, his 4–4–2 direct style of football is something certain Leeds fans have started to call for, and it will suit the Championship too. Ranieri is a likeable guy and would easily build rapport with the fans. You need a well-organised and disciplined team in the Championship, and that’s what a Claudio Ranieri team is to me.
However, I do believe to get a manager on board like Ranieri, you will need a significant transfer budget. I am sure Leeds could offer Ranieri a budget he would be happy to work with, but will Radrizzani want to?
Movement in the last 24 hours in terms of the next Head Coach does suggest that I will get my wish and we will see Pep Clotet take the reins and lead the club forward. For the first time in a long time, the club feels like it’s making the right moves under Andrea Radrizzani, and whoever takes over has more at their disposal to lead the club forward than we’ve had in years. Looking forward to seeing who Radrizzani selects. MOT.
