Five reasons Leeds fans should be optimistic
Leeds United’s maverick president, Massimo Cellino, released a statement on Tuesday announcing he will not be returning to the club when his Football League disqualification ends.
The Italian businessman was handed a ban from having anything to do with running the club until April after being found guilty of tax evasion and has now U-turned on his original plan to come back to the Championship side.
In the meantime, Cellino’s forced leave has coincided with an upturn in results on the pitch and Jack Kennedy takes a look at five reasons Leeds fans can be optimistic for the season’s run-in and their long-term future.
On pitch stability
It has been widely reported that Cellino feels it is within his remit to pick the team and select tactics and formations that his head coach, Neil Redfearn, has to carry out.
Since Cellino's departure, Leeds have won five out of seven - they had won one from nine previously.
Leeds Striker, Billy Sharp, recently claimed the team would be better off without interference from Cellino.
“If he (Cellino) leaves Redders and us to do the job then we’ll be fine,” Sharp told the Yorkshire Evening Post.
The Redfearn factor
Cellino is a notoriously brutal president when it comes to the sacking of managers. He got through 36 coaches in 22 years as owner of Italian side, Cagliari earning himself the ‘manager-eater’ nickname in Italy.
His Leeds reign started in typical fashion with a revolving door policy when it came to managers - making four managerial changes in just five months.
Cellino now appears to have settled with Redfearn as his man for the foreseeable future, giving him a 12-month contract in November.
The life-long Leeds fan and former striker has had a long history with English football and knows the club well, having been employed by them since 2009.
He's a safe pair of hands.
The not-so-much Italian job
When Cellino first bought the club there was widespread optimism that he would return Leeds to the upper echelons of British football with strong financial backing.
However, reportedly worth £750million, Cellino spent just £600,000 in the summer bringing in a number of relatively unknown Serie B players.
Coming up Christmas Leeds were in terrible form, with just two wins out of 13, the Italian imports were being shoehorned into the team supposedly on Cellino’s orders.
Cellino said, of the transfers: “The manager is part of the chain of the organisation. I don't trust my manager with these things.”
Since he has taken a step back Redfearn has kept just one of the signings in the team, goalkeeper, Marco Silvestri.
Financial backing
While Cellino has sold the minority stake he personally owned in the club his parent company Eleonora Sport Limited are still the majority stakeholders.
The acquisition of Sol Bamba on loan from Palermo on 23 January - the day Cellino was served the banning order - was savvy business; he has immediately made an impact on the pitch shoring up their creaky defence.
Cellino’s parent company have a lot of money and he has reassured the fans that he, and more importantly his wallet, will not to abandon the club despite being personally disqualified.
The return of the glory days?
Cellino has continuously stated his ambition for Leeds to return to the top flight and ‘regain their rightful place’ - where they belong.
They have a huge fan following, who have stuck with the team through the darker day - they still garner 20,000+ attendances for home games.
With the manager making decisions and some investment, who knows...