tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87170423980965102972024-03-09T18:45:41.583-08:00@sport_simonSimon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-84278261797657075472017-01-14T13:44:00.000-08:002017-01-16T01:50:37.183-08:00Lowdown on Chris Martin saga<script async src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
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<p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiBp_iQ_mggSNN52-8GSD78DFdCMtZBOKb7QCfXHc0KzheLKeudIt4UEIBheLdwkI4PzlosuMGobD130NNBLU5Yi1uXi8beDB4xYbVDjoLSAr0p0LSnM4S4uHvkZDDvMg16ei4CNRSx9A/s1600/_93210304_chrismarttinrex1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiBp_iQ_mggSNN52-8GSD78DFdCMtZBOKb7QCfXHc0KzheLKeudIt4UEIBheLdwkI4PzlosuMGobD130NNBLU5Yi1uXi8beDB4xYbVDjoLSAr0p0LSnM4S4uHvkZDDvMg16ei4CNRSx9A/s320/_93210304_chrismarttinrex1.jpg" width="320" height="183" /></a></div>Let's start today. Chris Martin made his first start for Fulham in more than two weeks in the Championship game against Barnsley, scoring the first goal and setting up the second in a 2-0 win.
<p>
Afterwards, manager Slavisa Jokanovic said the striker was staying at Craven Cottage until the end of the season, and this is almost certainly the case.
<p>
The Scotland international joined the Cottagers on a one-season loan just two minutes before the summer transfer window closed on 31st August, for a fee of more than £1.5million. Hefty.
<p>
His parent club, Derby, would have to stump up a significant amount of cash to get him back, and, basically, they're not willing to do that.
<p>
They signed David Nugent last week after trying, unsuccessfully, to land Jordan Rhodes from Middlesbrough.
<p>
So how did we get to this position? Jokanovic revealed that Martin had refused to play in the game against Reading on 30th December because he wanted to return early to Derby.
<p>
In actual fact, the striker, who's Fulham's top scorer this season, claimed he couldn't play because of a hamstring injury, yet a scan earlier this week revealed that there was no such problem and he was cleared to face Barnsley.
<p>
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<p>
If we rewind to August 31st, Fulham were desperately in need of a striker. Ross McCormack had gone to Aston Villa and Moussa Dembele had departed for Celtic.
<p>
That left the club with just one recognised striker, so they turned to Martin. To their surprise, new Rams boss Nigel Pearson was willing to let him go, for a chunky £1.5million + loan fee with the option to sign permanently. His salary was increased from £14k a week to £17k.
<p>
Fast forward to the end of 2016. Steve McClaren, a long-term admirer of the striker following their previous time working together at Pride Park, was back in charge of Derby and keen for Martin to return.
<p>
Martin's agent, Alex Levack, believed his client was in a win-win position now, so he went to Fulham and asked for a permanent deal on a salary of £28k a week. The Cottagers declined - and they also turned down a later request from Derby to bring Martin back, so the two-week impasse began.
<p>
Today's game would seem to be the end of all that. Derby now have Nugent and they don't want to pay to break Martin's loan contract at Fulham. Don't be surprised if he goes back to Derby in the summer and is sold on elsewhere...
<p>Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-49720904480379854692016-12-30T22:53:00.002-08:002016-12-30T23:00:26.175-08:00Ancelotti on English football's DNA<script async src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
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<p>
<i>(From Quiet Leadership, by Carlo Ancelotti):</i>
<p>
"In England there is much more aggression and less obsession with possession. English teams and players have a strong fighting mentality.
<p>
If I had to go to war, I would go with the English, not with the Italians or the French. It is absolutely essential to understand the culture, which is macho like the South Americans, but in a quiet, understated way.
<p>
Didier Drogba, for example, did not understand, when he first joined Chelsea and was guilty of simulation and exaggerating injuries on the pitch, that a big man simulating injury is not seen as manly in England - it goes against the notion of fair play, and this is a cultural thing.
<p>
It is different in Spain. John Terry spoke with him and he changed, going on to score lots of goals and become a club legend. Sometimes it is better for this conversation to come from the dressing room leader and not the boss.
<p>
That player can become de facto manager for this moment, in the sense that it's more effective when such advice comes from his teammates, peer to peer."Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-60851071177049799682016-12-17T13:19:00.001-08:002016-12-18T11:20:49.775-08:00Steve Evans: I still talk to Cellino on a regular basis<script async src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
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<p>
<i>In his own words:</i>
<p>
<b>RELATIONSHIP WITH CELLINO</b>
<p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXjzMmrMxuNtwQuIM5XB4pk-L6lRXo4gqQ14FSroYIJYtpYS5A-IAQgLYtwm9a2fYirYYHFcKUqoKgXQiAEl8iPkzL7MdPZQUmfbSHbvJZPkvI0yMFU3yUjOn3vkYIO0GttTi7Z7sdc6A/s1600/Massimo-Cellino-655214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXjzMmrMxuNtwQuIM5XB4pk-L6lRXo4gqQ14FSroYIJYtpYS5A-IAQgLYtwm9a2fYirYYHFcKUqoKgXQiAEl8iPkzL7MdPZQUmfbSHbvJZPkvI0yMFU3yUjOn3vkYIO0GttTi7Z7sdc6A/s400/Massimo-Cellino-655214.jpg" width="400" height="237" /></a></div>
I asked Sir Alex Ferguson for advice when I was offered the Rotherham job and he said ‘pick it by the chairman.’
<p>
That's something I followed and I'm still on great terms with the Rotherham owner. Now, I’m not sure what Sir Alex would have made of Massimo Cellino. To be honest I didn’t need to ask him, because it’s impossible to say no to a club like Leeds United.
<p>
I’m not like two or three of Mr Cellino's other managers, because I found my relationship with him was absolutely first class. We still speak on a regular basis, more about personal stuff, like our families.
<p>
His knowledge is very impressive. For example when we were going to play Reading, he knew about their central midfield. When we played QPR, he knew about their centre halves. I’d be mad to ignore what he said.
<p>
You filter it and make your own decisions though. I’ll be honest, because I don’t work for the club any more - I enjoyed his company and I enjoyed working for him. That might not be fashionable, but he’s up front.
<p>
He never told me who to pick. He’d give opinions - and people are naïve if they think owners don’t give opinions - but you take it on board and make your own decision.
<p>
Weak managers are the ones who go with it. He’s very knowledgeable, passionate, and speaks from the heart. But I never had a problem with him.
<p>
<b>WEIGHT LOSS</b>
<p>
The weight loss was something I undertook myself, just before Christmas last year. I've lost about four and half stone all in all.
<p>
Living away from my family and eating late was taking a toll. I was going to watch games three or four days a week and my health was not the best. I made a conscious effort to change that.
<p>
I've heard people say it was Mr Cellino who told me to lose the weight, which is quite funny really. We used to go for dinner a few times every week. I’d only have soup and he’d be saying ‘Steve, Steve, come on, have some pasta.’
<p>
But he treated me with respect from the moment I walked in the door. It takes a long time to change people’s perceptions of you. I have not been the subject of a referee’s report for a long time. I try and ask questions in a different, more dignified manner.
<p>
It will continue here at Mansfield Town. I don’t want to lose that passion and enthusiasm, but it’s about channelling it in the right way.
<p>
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<p>
<b>GARRY MONK:</b>
<p>
Mr Cellino and the other board members wanted someone with Premier League experience. That was hard to take, but I don’t think they could have made a better choice than Garry.
<p>
I think he had a wonderful base to build on and has done fantastically well. He's gone in and done a great job. There were issues that had to be dealt with – certainly some of the players had to go.
<p>
A dressing room needs to be together. When I sat down with Mr Cellino and discussed this season, I put names down that had to go. And he didn’t disagree with them. You can work out who they are for yourself.
<p>
It was a pretty difficult situation to manage last season. Sir Alex always told me ‘control the controllables – only spend time on the situations you can effect.’ So I had to manage it as well as I could, and wait for the opportunity to ship them out. Now Gary has done that.
<p>
After that it was about getting three or four players in who could make it much better. Garry has certainly done that. Bartley – who we tried to get - has been superb.
<p>
Bridcutt, who I had on loan, is a fantastic professional. Big Chris Wood has really hit his stride. He has that desire.
<p>
AFTER LEEDS:
<p>
I could have gone into Championship within two weeks of going out at Leeds, but they weren't the right jobs. Mr Cellino endorsed me for one particular role I was offered.
<p>
I'd only ever taken one week off in a summer period before. On this occasion I used the time to watch other managers in other countries and feel fresh and invigorated.
<p>
<b>LOOKING OUT FOR LEEDS:</b>
<p>
I felt very proud to be manager of Leeds United and I did my very best to represent it in a fitting manner. I was following on from some great men, like Sir Don Revie and Howard Wilkinson - what a privilege.
<p>
I look out for Leeds’ results and I’d love to go back to Elland Road to cheer them on as a fan. That place gets in your heart.
<p>
Half the fans were probably against me when I was appointed – maybe I’m being generous to myself there - but I’d like to think I won a fair few of them over by the end. I've become a fan.
<p>
The club will always be in my heart. The fans get you that way, it's a very unique football club. We were 19th and a point off the relegation zone when I took over. By the time I went, we were 13th, and looked like we might make the play offs for a while.
<p>
People will probably say ‘he’s gone to Mansfield Town, that makes him less ambitious.’ But I wanted to begin something with a real focus about it. People might say he’s gone to League Two, he’s lost his ambition, but nothing could be further from the truth.
<p>Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-42035823056880742952016-11-11T11:15:00.003-08:002016-11-24T11:43:04.678-08:00Neil Redfearn: What Leeds United means to me<html> <head> <script async src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script>
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<i>(This is the full transcript of an interview conducted in September:)</i>
<p>
<b>FORMATIVE YEARS:</b>
<p>
I grew up in Birkenshaw, between Leeds and Bradford. At that point Leeds were <i>the</i> side, in England and in Europe. They were a big influence on me. My dad (Brian, now 81) was a pro for 15 years. He played for Blackburn, Darlington, Bradford City, Bradford Park Avenue. From a young age I had a dad and a coach as well.
<p>
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I was fortunate to have my dad, because he always put that belief in me that I was good enough. And I always believed that myself. I instil that in other players as well, I make them feel they’re good enough.From seven or eight he used to take me to Leeds games. He was a Bradford fella but Don Revie had built this side that were the best in Europe. It was a great learning curve to watch these players, Clarke and Bremner and Hunter. We used to watch Leeds on Saturday and Bradford Northern, the rugby league side, on a Sunday. Just me and my Dad.
<p>
He’d pick out certain pieces in the game and say, ‘when the ball goes into Eddie Gray, watch how he takes it.’ When you’re seven or eight you can’t really see the mechanics of what they’re trying to do, just the quality in what they do, the touch. My favourite was Allan Clarke because he scored goals.
<p>
Not only was he a great player but he was prolific. Dad's favourite player was Bobby Charlton. Even in my mid twenties, I’d go out with this session my dad designed - it was about receiving and finishing round the box. It was based on Bobby Charlton when he’d pick the ball up, run with it and shoot from the edge of the area. It worked. Dad had worked out that if, as a midfield player, you could get 10 goals a season, then you would became a commodity.
<p>
I’m proud of my goal record – 181 goals from midfield – which is a lot, it's what a good striker would get. And a lot of that was down to him and how he worked. I look at some of the coaches I worked with during my career and he definitely had the quality. If it’s someone you really love, then you’re prepared to go that extra bit to try and learn how to do things, and I took that with me throughout my career.
<p>
<b>LEEDS FAN:</b>
<p>
We used to go in the West Stand, about halfway down to the right of the tunnel. We’d get the 226 bus onto Leeds Road and get off at the pub at the top and walk through the underpass. I can remember the excitement I felt. We'd get to the ground early and I'd just want to see the pitch, that green oasis.
<p>
There's one match I remember in particular - in the West Ridings Senior Cup. It was Leeds against Halifax Town and we beat them 4-1. I’ll never forget that night. It was rainy and thundery, close and warm. The pitch was immaculate. They were all blue and Leeds were all white. There were about 20 thousand there and it just got you, the theatre of it. It shapes who you are.
<p>
After school, we'd go out and play football, all in Leeds kit.
<P>
<b>ALMOST A LEEDS PLAYER:</b>
<p>
When I was at Barnsley, Leeds came in for me and apparently offered money plus Alfie Haaland when George Graham was boss. Barnsley turned it down because they thought they had a chance of staying in the Premier League so they kept hold of us. I learnt about that after. They also came in for us in the summer when I went to Charlton. I didn’t get to find out about that either, until it was too late. I had an agent, Mel Stein, and the Charlton deal was obviously best for the club.
<p>
<b>BACK AT ELLAND ROAD:</b>
<p>
A role with the academy became available and I thought it was a good chance to further myself as a coach. I took the Under 18s. It was my club. Simon Grayson had just come in as manager and was bringing it all together. He'd made some good signings and got some good backing.
<p>
People might not like me saying this, but my experiences with Ken Bates were always good. I know how he is, that he has a ruthless side, but he was good, supportive. I can’t say bad about someone I’ve not had a bad experience with.
<p>
<b>YOUNG GEMS:</b>
<P>
I could see these young players coming through. Cook was under 13, Mowatt was under 14. Phillips, Taylor and Byram were in the under 16s. I was looking at the best ways to develop them as individuals within the team. We had a system – a diamond to start with – and they were learning together and bringing each other on. We won the under-18s. I could see how good they were getting.
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<p>
With Alex Mowatt, we worked on how to get him round the box and getting those shots off. With Sam Byram, we’d work on these positions where we’d get him further forward and receiving it round the box. That comes from the stuff I did with me dad and the experiences I had with him as a coach.
<p>
My only concern was opportunity. Gwyn Williams could see how they were starting to develop. It’s about your manager being responsive to it. Neil Warnock didn’t really put kids in, he liked to bring in his own group – Brown, Tonge, Kenny.
<p>
I remember he came into the office one day and said ‘have you got any players?’ I laughed and said 'we’ve got about 300'. He said, 'I need someone to take to Cornwall for pre season. I told him, ‘I’ve got the best right back at the club – Sam Byram.’
<p>
I think he thought I was having him on, but he put him in and Sam took off, he was brilliant. Nothing phased him or flustered him. Then one or two others started getting in. They saw Sam and thought, ‘we can do this.’ They relaxed. There was the basis of a good side there for years to come.
<p>
Our smart targets were to get two from pro to first team every season. We were getting four or five. Warnock came in at the time we were in transition with the EPPP. The philosophy and coaching programme ran through the club and had to be agreed from the top. That's meant to be the identity of your football club, providing continuity. I wrote the club philosophy and coaching programme right through the age groups, from pro development to youth development to foundation.
<p>
It used to be on the academy website, but they took it down under Cellino because they associated it with me. When he got the hump on with me, they tried to cut off everything to do with me. It’s still there in place because, with respect, no-one there has the acumen to put it down. It was to be comfortable receiving and playing anywhere on the pitch and to play a structured passing game going through the thirds.
<p>
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<p>
<b>CELLINO ARRIVES:</b>
<p>
I had a call off an agent and had to go down to Elland Road. Cellino was there and said, ‘can you take this group of players in the morning?’ I rang Brian [McDermott] after and said ‘what’s happening’ and he said ‘they’ve sacked me.’ I was like fucking hell. I took training Saturday morning before the Huddersfield game. It was a mess. The players were asking what’s happening and I had to say I didn't know.
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<p>
That Friday, Cellino came in. The supporters barricaded him in at Elland Road. I remember first meeting him - there were all these people buzzing round him. I didn’t know who they were, they must have been agents. He said, ‘Neil, you need to take this group of players for tomorrow morning.’ He said Gianluca Festa was going to be in charge, with me helping him. He hugged me and said ‘you be my coach’. It was surreal.
<p>
Chairmen at English clubs are usually roast beef and Yorkshire pudding - you never see them. But there was this guy who looked like someone who was moving house and had been given two hours to do it. Everything was a rush and nothing made sense. Brian didn’t come to that Huddersfield game because GFH had advised him not to. They scored after about three minutes, through Danny Ward. I thought, 'fucking hell, we’re gonna get battered, it can’t get any worse', but then they went in one after another, 5-1. You can’t call it, can you?
<p>
I didn’t really see Cellino that much to start with. He'd come up to Thorp Arch now and again. His son Edoardo would come up, ‘just show him round the academy.’ So I’d sit down with this kid, who was going ‘wow,’ explaining 'we’ve got the foundation group, under eights, nines,' and he’d be ‘we’ve got a lot of players.’ And you’re thinking ‘what’s he going to go back and tell his dad?’
<p>
Cellino got one of the corporate boxes right at the end at Elland Road, like a makeshift office, with Debra Ware’s office on the other side. That was where you used to go in. That was where he had Benny Carbone based to start with.
<p>
<b>SURREAL SUMMER:</b>
<p>
It seemed they liked what they saw with the academy and I thought we’ll plough on with them and see how many of the lads we can get in the first team. But they were cutting costs. I thought ‘this is Leeds United, what are you doing?' Dave Hockaday came in - and, to be fair, he was a lovely bloke - and Junior Lewis was a nice guy too, but you’re thinking, 'jesus, you’re like lambs to the slaughter here.' Dave didn’t have a chance.
<p>
Then Cellino stopped everything at Thorp Arch - he closed the kitchen and stopped the food. But we had a duty of care to these kids, it’s in the contracts. Lucy started cooking so the kids had something to eat.
<p>
He drained all the water out of the pool. The pressure of the water had kept the tiles in place and they started buckling. It cost £25k a year to heat and treat and he said ‘we’re not having that.’ He made the cleaners redundant, getting the apprentices to do it. That’s when the bug went round. Spores from the swimming pool area caused a sickness bug. He got rid of security. On a night when we had hundreds of kids in, anyone could walk in. He was getting rid of people on £12k a year and still paying Paddy Kenny, who couldn’t stop a pig in a passage, £20k a week.
<p>
We had to have people deliver the food in the end from Elland Road, not refrigerated. Lucy was cooking for about 80 people a day.
<p>
We were leaving at about eight every other night following a 14-hour day. They brought in Mishcon de Reya to do the redundancies. They got all the heads of department to help in this. I met Andrew Umbers and he said, 'right, you’ve got to sit these people down and say they’re going to be made redundant.' I said, 'I’m not doing that, I’m a football coach.' The process was illegal, but you had cleaners who didn’t have the money to do anything and there was no union. <p>
There was this fear and people did what they were told, even if they didn’t agree with it. I remember taking Benny Carbone to Thorp Arch and the grass was about three feet long. The whole place smelled. There was no electric. We were trying to sort out the running costs of the academy because he wanted it all cut down - and you’ve got Cook £5million, Byram £4million – it pays for itself for the next 20 years.
<p>
But no-one would ever dare say that to him, because you couldn’t question him. That first time I went down to see him, I said ‘you look like you need some help.’ And he said ‘yes.’ We got talking about football. He asked me about young players and said, ‘I love this system.’ He listened more. The more I got to know him the less he listened.
<p>
<b>BECOMING MANAGER:</b>
<p>
It was after Wolves at home and we got beat 2-1. I had an idea what was happening because I had the call from Nicola Salerno on the Friday, ‘come to the game on Saturday.’ I said 'do I need to? There’s an 18s game.' 'You need to sit with Mr Cellino.' I thought he’s gonna do him. Milanic had only had six games.
<p>
We went ahead through Antenucci and battered them and I thought 'good, I don’t want to be in the middle of this shitstorm.' But they scored again and Cellino got up and stormed off.He can’t sit still through a game - he’s holding your leg, twitching, shouting in Italian. Fans were calling up to him. This time he'd been even more agitated than usual.
<p>I got to my car and had the phone call, 'come back in'. He said ‘you take the team. Get them in tomorrow.’ Cardiff was my first game. My dealings then were with Matt Child, so it was quite a sane environment. I said, 'if it gives me chance to get these young lads in and get em playing, then I’ll do it.'
<p>
Matt fought for me to get Thommo in. There was a clause in my contract that I’d pick the team. I think he knew it wasn’t the be all and end all for me, so he never had that hold over me. I just need the right people round me, like Thommo. And I knew what these kids were capable of.
The first time we did the running the Italians were blowing. I used to say to the players, 'if you lose it, run after it and let them see you run after it. That’s it. We’ve got to be brave enough to pass it, I’ll give you a plan. This is your theatre. If they see you run after it you’ll be like gladiators.' If there wasn’t the influence of Cellino over the Italian lads, I would have helped them too, because you could see them thinking 'I like this'.
<p>
They’d speak to him. Perhaps in their culture that’s what happened. The president brought players in and the coaches came and went. They were always quite respectful. The bit I like is on the grass with the players. I’m a tracksuit manager. As a coach I’m at my strongest. I’m honest and genuine.
<p>
<b>DOING IT MY WAY:</b>
<p>
We beat Derby at home 2-0, then got beat at Derby. I’d persevered with the Italians, but our season is that intense it caught up with them all. They looked leggy. I said to Thommo 'we’re gonna have to radically change this and become a functional Championship side.' We played Murphy and Austin at Sunderland away and they ran the game.
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<p>
Recruitment wasn't ideal. He’s brought Nicola Salerno in as head of recruitment, who is a very nice guy. But I'm not sure he understood the demands of the Championship or what it took to do well there. He said, ‘we’ve got this Albanian centre forward, he’s brilliant.’ I saw the footage on Scout 7 and got Alex Davies to do some more clips for me. He just looked raw and the level he was playing at just wasn’t good.
<p>
When he scored a goal you could hear one bloke clapping, because there was no-one there. Cani came in and trained and I’m thinking 'you’re miles away.' He was a nice enough kid. I think he was Bellusci’s mate. He worked hard enough but was nowhere near. I had people like Steve Morison, who was not scoring but playing well and working hard. And he’s an experienced big man. He came to see us and I went ‘I’m sick of you. You think everything should be on a plate. Why don’t you man up and show us how good you are?’
<p>
And it was like a relief for him. He found himself again. I saw him grow as a person. He was massive in us doing alright. We played one up top and everything that went into him he got hold of it or shook it up. He was great for Mowatt and Byram. Billy Sharpe was itching to play but we weren’t strong enough to play 4-4-2.
<p>
I knew Thommo from when we played. We were good mates at Bolton and I knew what he’d bring - a human touch, which is what the group needed. The crowd is brilliant but harsh and hostile and between them you need some safe ground. Cellino would phone me up and say 'you don’t need an assistant. You’re my coach, we’ll do it together.' But we had 30 odd players. You’re like 'fucking hell, I'm doing this on my own.'
<p>
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<p>
<b>ECCENTRICITIES:</b>
<p>
Before the Bournemouth game, he called me in and said ‘we need to win tonight. I don’t want to be relegated.’ I said ‘you know these are top of the league?’ We’d come off the back of some hit and miss results. He said ‘I’ll come and cook for the boys, I’ll cook proper pasta.’ He must have helped, or told them what to do, and they cooked it. It's just a bit odd, isn’t it? The players ended up taking things on board that shouldn’t be happening. When the supporters first meet him he’ll have a selfie. He’ll let people in, and then some get <i>right</i> in. For him to become better, he needs better people around him.
<p>
We kept getting done in the wide areas and overloaded. Before we played Ipswich, we spent hours and hours with a back four and two in front and did waves against them attacking. It allowed everything else to start flourishing. It was four-two-fuck off and play. Murph came in and Austin.
<p>
We said when they break they’re gonna hit that wall. Mowatt started playing off behind the front and found little pockets because his gamecraft is brilliant. And you know that if you can get him half a yard round the box on his left foot he’s a scorer. He got 10 goals that season from midfield. We found little niches for the wide ones. We put Byram and Taylor there. The number of games we started winning 1-0 and 2-1. We nilled Bournemouth and Boro. It was all about not having it, but we knew where we’d go when we got it.
<p>
<b>THOMPSON SACKED:</b>
<p>
First thing in the morning there was a knock on the door. Ally, the secretary, gave Thommo a letter. He’s opened it and read it and his face changed. 'Fucking hell, have you read this?'
<p>
I rang Andrew Umbers, ‘what the hell’s going on?’ ‘It’s nothing to do with me, it’s Nicola Salerno.’
<p>
So I make another call, ‘Nicola, what’s going on?’ ‘It’s not me, it’s Andrew Umbers.’
<p>
Apparently they said he’d bad mouthed Nicola Salerno, but when I spoke to him he said nothing had happened. You could never meet two nicer guys in football. Thommo would never disrespect anyone and Nicola’s not like that. So I don’t know where they cooked this story up.
<p>
They took it out on Thommo because of the Antenucci thing. It’s like 'I’m in charge'. His contract stated that when he got to 12 goals, he got a new deal. I spoke to Cellino, whether I was supposed to or not. He said 'don’t let him get to 12 goals. He’s one of these that downs tools.' You’re talking about another year - in the scheme of things that's pence. I said, 'if that’s what you want to happen, you have got to tell him and publicly tell him. Because if I don’t play him, how does that make me look?'
<p>
He was starting to nick a goal or two. They were trying to make me fall in line – 'we’re in charge, you do it like this'. But they’d put me in charge of football matters. And I thought he was worth another year. If he got 12 goals and that was in his contract, then fair play to the lad.
<p>
In the end it was childish. Just get on the phone and be grown up about it. And show your humility. It was little bombs all of the time, like Stix phoning the players and saying 'you’ll be back this time and not that time for pre season' the day before a game.
<p>
<b>SICKNOTE SIX:</b>
<p>
Antenucci came to me on the Thursday before the Charlton game and said, ‘my hamstring’s a bit tight.’ I said, 'will you be alright for Saturday?' And he said, 'yeah, I should be fine.'. Then on the Friday, we were doing a warm up and Del Fabro went in, then Doukara, Bellusci. Doukara said ‘coach, my groin, my groin,’ and leapt over the fence at the edge of the pitch. At least make it look official.
<p>
They’d obviously got their heads together. It wasn’t the time to have an inquiry, because we had to set off at half one from Elland Road. We got on the bus and went. Berardi travelled. All the lads got round and he went right up in their estimations, you could see it. Because he must have been approached. The lads knew what had been going on. Steve Morison came out and said something about it after the game. And it all soured after that. We lost five on the trot.
<p>
My day to day dealings were with Andrew Umbers, who just wasn’t a football person. He was relaying info from Cellino. Cellino got frustrated because he wasn’t there, hands on. I think he thought Thommo got between the relationship of me and him, which was bollocks. All this, 'he stopped ringing me.' No I didn’t.
<p>
<b>'CELLINO'S CRANKY WORLD'</b>
<p>
This lad Andrea just used to come up and watch training. He’d work out from the shape what the starting 11 was going to be and would relay that. Ipswich was the one. At that point Cellino wanted Berardi in and had a bee in his bonnet about that. It was like the Chuckle Brothers – I had the phone held out at arm’s length because he was shouting so much.
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<p>
Andrea would just come up from Elland Road. He was never introduced. He was called the spy. He’d obviously come up to find out what was going on. We used to take a bag of balls before training and spank them all over the training pitch and say ‘Andrea, do us a favour mate, get 'em in.’ And he’d be gone for half an hour picking them all up.
<p>
That’s Cellino’s cranky world. He’s taken to this guy and given him an opportunity, but you have to have a skillset. He’s been looking at players. He spoke different languages as well. Nicola’s English wasn’t great, so he was the linguistic link.
<p>
We played Brighton away. Cellino was banned and said ‘Andrew Umbers is coming to the game and he’s bringing his wife. His wife has never seen us win. You need to get something lucky. You need to wear something purple - socks or a belt. Or you need to shake Eddie Gray’s hand, he was born on the 17th.’ He sent it me in a text.
<p>
Matt Child had resigned in March, which was a big blow. He was good for the club and good for me. Then there’s no barrier or sounding board, you’re straight into it. Andrew Umbers came to me and said 'you need to write a list of players you want.' I wanted Jason Shackle, Joey Barton, Matty Phillips, Charlie Adam. Thommo drank with Charlie Adam and he was receptive to it. He said ‘big club.’ They would have been marquee signings.
<p>
They all went to Championship clubs. These were the right type of people. They leaked it to have a go at me. We approached Barton’s agent and he said would he be interested.
<p>
<b>THE END:</b>
<p>
Cellino said I’d disrespected him by not turning up to his welcoming do. What welcoming do? Nobody had told me. Nobody had even told me he was coming back. The only disappointment was you know you’re capable. I honestly believe I could have made Leeds United great again.
<p>
The season had finished. We gave everyone a date to come back. We did the spark testing and gave everyone a personal fitness sheet. We were going to get them back halfway through the close season for a testing week. Then there was the press conference when he rubbished me. It was just childish. He was trying to rubbish something that had been successful.
<p>
I don’t think he surrounds himself with good people. He’d listened to bad advice. I would have had far more respect for him if he’d rung me up, like a man. Even if he’d said, 'I didn’t like this and that and I’ve taken someone else on.' I wouldn’t be happy but I’d say 'fair enough, that’s football.' At least he’d have had the arsehole to sit down with me and say it face to face. I got 50 points from 36 games.
<p>
It was just badly handled. And it was the vindictiveness that went with it. There’s just no need. Tell the truth and look after people. Nobody spoke to me at all. I got a call from Adam Pearson, who had just come to the club - 'can I meet you at Wentworth Hotel.'
<p>
He said, 'I tell you now, he’s looking for another manager.' I said, 'I’m not stupid. Just make him be right with me.' They put the release out that they were offering me my old job as academy manager. I had the meeting with him at the Mercure Hotel at Wetherby. He said, 'you’ll come back in on your new contract on the 1st of July and until the 30th of June you’ll be put in the garden.' 'So you’re not giving me my old job back?' 'No, you’ll be put in the garden.'
<p>
I had a meeting with Pearson at Thorp Arch. I got there and there was only the groundsman and another car, and Uwe Rosler was in there. It was when he’d just come in and I was going. He’d gone for a cup of tea and said, 'I’m really sorry'. I said, 'it’s not your fault mate, you’re just a pawn in the game like me.' He was camped watching our games from Christmas onwards.
<p>
<b>THE FUTURE: </b>
<p>
I had the best part of a season there, which is a long time for a Cellino manager. I would have gone back to the academy. If somebody had said to me ‘you’re gonna be manager of Leeds United’ when I was eight years old, I would never have dreamt of it. You can look back and be bitter but I’m not. What I did was good. I was offered the Kilmarnock job after Rotherham, but I needed some time out.
<p>
I love working in football. I like to see people get better. He set me on. If it had gone well, he would have got the credit. If the timing was right and the right people were in charge, I'd go back, but I can’t see it. I don’t think he’s well, I think he’s got a problem. I definitely think he liked me, he set me on. I was on his side, in his corner.
<p>
<b>COOK ET AL: </b>
<p>
He was one of these, Cooky – you’d tell him and he’d get it, like that. That’s the difference between a top player and the rest. He’d take it in and evolve it himself. Football is not that complicated – get ‘em fit, show them their jobs and everyone else’s, and then develop them as people. That psychological element is so big. It controls everything – your confidence, belief. Young people are impressionable. You’ve got them at a really good age to grow. Senior professionals are set in their ways. Give them something they can hold and feel good about. We all want to feel good about ourselves.
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<p>
I was pleased for Sam and Lewis when they moved, because they’re getting on. But I was disappointed for the club, because they should be the foundation. You can only put it down to mismanagement. There’s not a structure or long-term plan. They had the tools to be good for a long time, but it’s not viewed like that. The kids when I was there they wanted to stay. Agents get involved and they get involved for a reason - because there’s money in it.
<p>
Leeds were never in control of it because of one man. I think they could have made better moves if I’m honest. I think if they’d have been at Leeds now, with the right information being put into them and the right eye over them, developing em, they could have got better moves out of it. And they might not have needed to move.
<p>
What these lads have got is humility. Last year they’d stopped learning, because they were not in a learning environment. I think now they are, because Monk is a coach based manager. They’ve had seven or eight years of being really open and receptive. Steve Evans is not a coach. He’s not brought a coach with him. He’s a wheeler and dealer.
<p>
He’s not going to go out and make these players better, he’s going to sign players who are better. The nearer you get to the top, the margins become finer. You have to build something sustainable. I could see Cooky captaining England. I remember when we got absolutely battered by Ipswich and he was unbelievable. It was the best I’ve ever seen him play.
<p>
You’re talking about a 17-year-old kid, and he was getting hold of seasoned professionals and making them close down and get back. We’re getting battered and he should have been with his chin in his boots, and I’m looking and thinking, ‘wow, what a player and what a person. 17 years old with that leadership quality.’
<p>
Lucy speaks to them still and we want them to do well. When you’ve been with them that long you know how much they’ve put in. You want them to do well and be successful. The shame is we are for Leeds, we want them to be successful. It’s just a shame they can’t see the bigger picture. I would have given them five year contracts and sat them down and said 'how are we gonna chart our way forward now?' And I don’t mean getting promoted in two seasons, I mean being calculated.
<p>
When we get there, we’re going to be ready. These players will be cooked, they’ll be ready, bordering internationals, because we’re going to put that much into them. We’ll allow them to fail. But there’s that short termism at Leeds, that McDonalds quick fix, got to have it now. You’ve gone from having Lucy to go to, to put her arm round them, something to lean on, and they’ve been exposed now.
<p>
They’ve got a move, but for their long-term development, was that really the best thing for them as footballers? Byram will become another player at West Ham. Where does the development come in that? That personal touch makes them more accountable. They feel they’ve got people on their side and owe it to their parents, who’ve been bringing them in. They owe it to them and to themselves.
<p>
There’s a lot of history with Leeds and the people know it. It’s more than a football club to them, it’s their life. We were all Leeds fans. If anyone ever got hold of it, wow. It’s that big.
<p>
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Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com41tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-56243460042378715262016-09-10T13:31:00.002-07:002016-09-10T13:47:57.822-07:00Karl Robinson: I was offered Leeds job but they ended up with a better managerAfter MK Dons' 1-1 draw at Bolton today, I asked their manager Karl Robinson what happened with Leeds United this summer.
<p>
He was reported to have been Massimo Cellino's first choice for the manager's job, but turned it down after having a meeting with the Italian.
<p>
"It was a unique summer," Robinson said. "It came close, but I chose to stay.
<p>
"Now they’ve ended up with a better manager than me in Garry Monk.
<p>
"Mr Cellino has said an awful lot of things about me. A lot of people didn’t know the truth.
<p>
"We can’t always say what goes on. But I’m an MK Dons man. I live there, my daughter goes to school there and my wife has a business there.
<p>
"I love this club. I was jumping around like a madman today because I care."Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-49853493444930942342016-07-22T03:15:00.000-07:002016-07-26T01:24:26.485-07:00Burkinis: oppressive or ok?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<p>
<b><i>UPDATE: I wrote a blog expressing my unease about the wearing of the burkini swimming costume.
<p>REBECCA BUTT has posted this response.</i></b>
<p>In all honesty, the title of the piece was enough to irk me. I said to myself, "here we go again, another unnecessary debate about Muslim women and the 'cold oppressive shackles of Islam'."
<p>With Islamophobia on the rise, articles of this nature do nothing other than provide a platform for bigots to gather and share their uninformed and often intolerant views.
<p>I don't want to imply that Simon had any bad intentions. However, it would be ignorant to turn a blind eye to the consequences such debates have on the Muslim community - especially when they are presented without understanding the subject matter.
<p>More often than not, it leads to heightened hostility towards Muslims, in particular Muslim women, who are often treated with suspicion whilst simultaneously pitied for their perceived lack of freedom.
<p>Simon's tweet posting the piece received many responses. Some of my favourites included, '[Muslims] should live by our rules' and '...I always seem to think, what are you hiding? Maybe it’s a trust thing with the world we live in today.’
<p>Pieces like the one Simon wrote are read as statements as opposed to questions. This in turn leads to comments like the ones above being made in support of what the readers believe the writer had been stating.
<p>
Again, this all stems from a lack of understanding about the issue being addressed.
<p>
So let me try and break it down for you. Hijab is the Islamic concept of modesty and decency for both men and women, which includes behaviour as well as personal attire.
<p>I think it needs to be highlighted that hijab is not, as Kevin MacKenzie implied in his article, only a symbol of faith like wearing a crucifix around your neck.
<p>
Hijab is a significant part of the religion of Islam and observing it is an obligation on its followers. Therefore, when a woman chooses to cover her head and body, whether that be on the street or in the swimming pool, she is practising her faith.
<p>
Objecting to this is objecting to her human right to freedom of religion. It's as simple as that.
<p>
Burkinis allow Muslim women to be able to swim whilst adhering to their religion. Despite Simon describing the burkini as a dark full-body swimsuit that covers every inch of the body except the face, most of them do not in fact cover the hands and feet; nor is there a requirement for the burkini to be dark in colour.
<p>
The burkini is made from a very similar material to ordinary swimming costumes and therefore is not hot, heavy, nor inappropriate for swimming.
<p>
I would like to assure Simon and anybody else who may have felt concerned for the women mentioned that the stares they received from the people around them would have caused more discomfort than anything else.
<p>
What people need to realise is that the majority of Muslim women who observe hijab, including myself, do it out of our own free will and happiness.
<p>
We do not feel oppressed. In fact, we feel liberated. We have not fallen victim to the social pressures which appear to dictate how women should dress and behave.
<p>
Therefore, people like Yasmin Alibhai-Brown who imply the hijab is part of a wider Islamic patriarchal system of control, fail to understand the true purpose of it.
<p>
And they fail to acknowledge the right Muslim women have to choose whether or not they want to adhere to it. Taking that choice away from them - whether it be banning burkinis, or imposing bikinis or a one-piece as the only suitable swimwear - is one and the same.
<p>
<hr>
<p>
<b>I went swimming yesterday (bear with me here) and there were two women in the pool wearing 'burkinis' - dark, full-body swimsuits.</b>
<p>
Other than their faces, every millimetre of skin was covered, right down to the soles of their feet.
<p>
And, instinctively, without having really though about it, I felt uneasy. These visceral reactions can be telling, and also the ones we try to keep hidden.
<p>
Swimmers were staring at the women (who must have only been in their early twenties) and I wondered what they themselves thought about their attire.
<p>
My gut reaction surprised me, and I've been trying to analyse it since.
<p>
When I see women wearing Islamic robes or veils in the street, I don't think anything of it. And I found <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1483159/the-hijab-is-a-religious-statement-would-tv-regulators-allow-the-wearing-of-a-christian-cross-that-prominent/">Kelvin Mackenzie's comments about presenter Fatima Manji</a> ridiculous, because there wasn't even an established link between the perpetrator of the Nice massacre and Islam, at least not at the time of the Channel Four bulletin.
<p>
I was also angry that newspapers had described killer Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel as an 'ISIS soldier' and 'Islamic terorrist', when there was no evidence of this.
<p>
The intention was clear - to link his terrible actions with Islam - in a way that didn't happen with the killer of MP Jo Cox. And <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jun/18/jo-cox-murder-suspect-thomas-mair-told-police-he-was-political-activist">Thomas Mair had actually made political statements</a> during the murder, according to eye-witness reports.
<p>
The difference? Mair is white and not Muslim.
<p>
But the 'burkinis' made me feel uneasy. The garments seemed so unsuitable for swimming, so heavy and all-encompassing, especially on a hot, sunny day; and so at odds with what the vast majority of people normally wear in swimming pools (some may liken them to wetsuits, but how many people go to the local baths in a wetsuit?)
<p>
The incongruity was stark, the inappropriateness too. The garments made a bold statement - about difference, about religion.
<p>
Should we be tolerant of women having to completely cover up, at all times, even when they're swimming? Should shops like M&S sell the burkinis?
<p>
Journalist <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-3519932/Bin-burkini-M-S-launches-UK-burkini-Muslim-writer-YASMIN-ALIBHAI-BROWN-says-insidious-Islamification-fashion-terrible-blow-women.html">Yasmin Alibhai-Brown said that in doing so, the company</a> was "complicit in a version of Islam that believes women must be subjugated in public."
<p>
How would I explain the costumes to my young daughters? They always ask questions when they see something different and I always try and give open answers.
<p>
I'm not sure there would be a rational explanation.
<p>Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-68786279199424624552016-04-15T13:24:00.001-07:002016-04-15T14:04:06.076-07:00Andrea Iore: Leeds United's head of recruitment?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu__Of9R_CxI-AzdYZZ8EHYFidbgTdfoPq6AMgzrEJWIhq2H266x9Z-q8V-ILepZKn8tdagMahEshv9JOCCvEWYL-Yw4X_mSrzOuw3forNw7gvRyydct7rXNBiIVGhhaoVrcjYsOS7jfQ/s1600/andrea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu__Of9R_CxI-AzdYZZ8EHYFidbgTdfoPq6AMgzrEJWIhq2H266x9Z-q8V-ILepZKn8tdagMahEshv9JOCCvEWYL-Yw4X_mSrzOuw3forNw7gvRyydct7rXNBiIVGhhaoVrcjYsOS7jfQ/s400/andrea.jpg" /></a></div>
<b>I first wrote about Andrea Iore a year ago - a story that seemed almost too strange to be true.</b>
<p>
Perhaps you'll remember it. The Frenchman came onto the radar of the Cellinos when he was working in a furniture shop in Miami. Mrs Cellino came in as a customer and was struck by Andrea's politeness and fluency in several languages.
<p>
So she spoke to her husband, who arranged for Andrea to be brought to Leeds United as an intern. The then 23-year-old initially worked in the club shop, before progressing to interpreter for chief scout Nicola Salerno.
<p>
Andrea was given a modest wage and put up in a flat in the city.
<p>
So far, so good. In fact this could even have been Leeds United's own version of My Fair Lady.
<p>
It was less amusing when Andrea started turning up in the boardroom for matches though. And at important meetings. And at the Thorp Arch training ground, where he would sometimes quiz the manager about selection and tactics and voice his own opinions on both (seemingly based on little other than watching games on TV or playing Football Manager).
<p>
Soon Andrea gained the nickname 'the spy', because the staff and players at Thorp Arch were convinced he was simply there to relay information back to the owner.
<p>
Andrea has crossed my radar a few times since - doing keepy-uppies on the training pitch as the Leeds first team were put through their paces by Uwe Rosler; acting as Souleymane Doukara's interpreter when he appeared before an FA Commission to answer a charge of biting (and was criticised as a witness); appearing on the touchline at Elland Road on matchdays; and sitting in front of the Cellinos as they watched from their box.
<p>
Last summer Cellino told me he had just returned from a scouting mission to Portugal - with Andrea.
<p>
This all seemed strange, I must admit, although I forgot about the Parisien until a few weeks ago, when a respected agent called to ask if I knew a 'young French lad called Andrea', who he said was acting as the 'head of recruitment' at Leeds United.
<p>
Apparently he had been assigned as the point of contact regarding players in and out (and there could be a few of those this summer).
<p>
Another agent confirmed this. Now, it could be that Andrea is acting up in this role until the club finds a permanent replacement for Martyn Glover, who departed for Sunderland in January.
<p>
Or perhaps he's just fielding calls.
<p>
But, still. It augments the image of a club being run on a whim and on a shoestring.
<p>
Earlier this week, Lucy Ward spoke about the cleaners being sacked at Thorp Arch last year, causing some of the academy players to get ill.
<p>
And we found out she had been doing the players' laundry... and that the person who deals with payroll is effectively also the head of HR.
<p>
Now this. Andrea Iore, 24, de facto head of recruitment?Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com149tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-68126818351342734582016-04-10T14:49:00.003-07:002016-04-10T14:52:36.214-07:00Why people are angry about Cameron's tax affairs"There are two Britains. The people who have this wealth in Government are telling us there is no alternative but to make swingeing savage cuts across the public sector and on the incomes of the poorest.
<p>
"People have a right to know that some of these wealthy people live in a very different world to them.
<p>
"It’s clearly questionable when people who have that independent wealth are making political decisions where the poorest are suffering in unimaginable ways.
<p>
"Cameron and Osborne do not have a clue what it’s like to struggle to make ends meet, to visit a food bank, to be disabled, to worry about a zero hours contract and not know where your next penny is coming from.
<p>
"When they say ‘we’re all in this together,’ the last week has shown we are not all in this together."
<p>
<i>Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of the PCS Union</i>Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-88861950223224645852016-04-03T01:07:00.000-07:002016-04-03T01:07:07.469-07:00Steve Thompson: Leeds' loss is Preston's gain<b>Match-winner Jordan Hugill explained what Steve Thompson has brought to Preston North End since arriving at the club in the summer.</b>
<p>
I've always been intrigued, because his arrival at Leeds last season also led to an upturn, before he was suspended and then released.
<p>
There still hasn't been an official reason as to why this happened and Thompson is none the wiser.
<p>
"We’ve not really changed the squad since we got promoted from League One," Hugill told me.
<p>
"The spirit is still the same, everyone loves to come training. We’ve moved up the table as we’ve gone along.
<p>
"He’s been really good around the training ground. Sometimes after reserve games I’ll go to him and say what can I do better and he’ll always be honest with me.
<p>
"He gets players going. It’s something you need to have at the club and he’s brilliant.
<p>
"It’s good to have someone you can do and say what can I improve on? You’re always learning the game, no matter how old you get.
<p>
"It’s good to have someone to say ‘do this, don’t look out of place and he’s done that with me.’"Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-15703084471272421832016-03-01T00:01:00.001-08:002016-03-01T02:31:42.790-08:0010 things Cellino should have done differently<b>Even for a club accustomed to pitfalls and calamities, this really does feel like a new low for Leeds United.</b>
<p>
Beaten 4-0 at Brighton, with all the goals coming inside 38 minutes; the owner walking out at half time; then apparently instructing the club's staff not to speak to the press.
<p>
Pretty disrespectful when 1,500 had travelled hundreds of miles to the south coast on a Monday night.
<p>
There is irony in the fact the club is marooned in 17th - Cellino's demon number.
<p>
So this seems like a good time to ask where it's all gone wrong. And I think there is only one place you can look, because the owner has turned the club into a reflection of his own fragile, troubled and erratic personality.
<p>
He has always been honest about the fact he is a control freak who wants to do everything. The staff has been greatly reduced and only a select few have stayed for the course of his tenure - player liaison man Stix Lockwood and PA Debra Ware among them.
<p>
In place of these experienced staff are various hangers on - Terry George, Cellino's son Edoardo and his friends - Andrea (he of the Miami furniture shop) and someone called Kit who looks after the website.
<p>
On Twitter, people often counter that it's unfair to blame the Italian, because he inherited a lot of debt, his hands have been tied because of the relationship with GFH: basically that there's not a lot more he could have done.
<p>
So here are 10 things he could, and should, have done differently, which wouldn't have cost a penny:
<p>
<b>1) Promises: </b>
<p>
Someone, somewhere, said that happiness = reality - expectation. This is quite true. But on the April 2014 day that his ban was overturned, and he officially bought Leeds United, he did an interview with me for The Sun (I am grateful) in which he made a series of lavish promises: he would go to the bank that week to buy Elland Road; he would buy the Thorp Arch training ground and the club would be back in the Premier League by 2016/17. Otherwise he would have failed.
<p>
These promises were then backdated, until a point when they were just abandoned. He would have been better assessing the situation properly and being honest and realistic with the fans.
<p>
<b>2) Sticking with a manager... any manager:</b>
<p>I recently did an interview with Brian McDermott, and he was very measured about Cellino. But he did admit that what stuck in the craw was that the owner sacked him (first time, anyway) before he'd even met him, let alone got to know him.
<p>
Perhaps McDermott wasn't pulling up any trees, but he's experienced, has integrity and is now doing well at Reading, who he's taken to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. It's hard to believe that things wouldn't be better at Leeds if he was still there.
<p>
He was on a decent salary, but it was the going rate for a strong Championship manager with Premier League experience. And has Cellino actually saved money by sacking him? He had to give him a pay-off and he's then gone through a succession of other managers.
<p>
As we know, Darko Milanic (until yesterday) and Uwe Rosler are still on the payroll at the club. None of the six bosses he's had has been given the time to properly implement their methods or philosophy, which brings us onto...
<p>
<b>3) Leave the manager alone: </b>
<p>Being a manager under Cellino is like having a crazy, overbearing father who joins you at work every day.
<p>
He has pestered all of his managers about players, tactics and training. He's cooked the pre-match meal, he's gone in the dressing room at half time, he's insisted Evans go out for meals with him. It's stifling and counter-productive.
<p>
There came a point in Neil Redfearn's tenure, at Christmas 2014, when he decided 'if I'm going to get sacked, I might as well do things my way.'
<p>
So he brought in Steve Thompson as assistant, he started to select the team HE and not the owner wanted and he ditched the diamond formation Cellino insisted on. Things went well and there was a point in March when Leeds had the second best record in the Championship for 2015.
<p>
But the Italian was 'very, very hurt' that Redfearn wasn't involving him or giving him credit, and he publicly undermined him before failing to renew his contract. Could any manager effectively work under conditions like that, seriously?
<p>
<b>4) Executives: </b>
<p>A frustration is that the Italian is capable of identifying talented staff. Matt Child was good and so too Adam Pearson. But he seems incapable of keeping them for any period of time.
<p>
Cellino admits one of his failings is that he wants to 'drive the bus', that he finds it almost impossible to delegate. This is having calamitous results. When Child was working in tandem with Redfearn, things looked bright. Ditto with Pearson and Rosler (off the pitch, anyway).
<p>
But they went after very short tenures and things, basically, went tits up.
<p>
<b>5) Battles:</b>
<p>These are almost too numerable to mention, but here goes: Cellino v Football League, Sky, Graham Bean, Macron, Leeds Fans Utd, his lawyers, Cameron Stewart, Lucy Ward, Neil Redfearn, the fans, GFH.
<p>
And, of course, the one common denominator is him. These battles take a lot of time, energy and money. Cameron Stewart's contract was ripped up - and the club ended up having to pay him a season's salary and costs, all without the benefit of having him kick a ball in a Leeds shirt.
<p>
The battles also lead to the same conclusion - that other people are being blamed, when the blame actually lies closer to home. As we all know (and it's easier said than done) you need to control the controllables in life.
<p>
<b>6: Recruitment:</b>
<p>When Cellino came in, he told me he had a worldwide network of scouts. And his former club, Cagliari, did uncover some gems, like Naingollan and Ibarbo.
<p>
But we've seen precious little evidence of that at Leeds. Cellino's first season was marked by a slew of (largely poor) imports from Italy, under the guidance of Nicola Salerno.
<p>
At the start of 2015/16, the recruitment policy seemed to be guided more by manager Rosler, and the focus was on players with experience of English football.
<p>
But the overall recruitment has been poor, even if the wage bill has been reduced. This is especially dangerous when you're selling very good players, like Ross McCormack and Sam Byram. If you can't adequately replace them, the effect is disastrous.
<p>
<b>7: Neil Redfearn (and Lucy Ward): </b>
<p>Opinion seems to be split on Redfearn, which has surprised me. Leeds had their best (in fact only) good spell of form of the Cellino regime when he was in charge.
<p>
I think his success was down to the fact that, as former academy boss, he was able to capitalise on the club's third biggest asset (after its fans and history) - the youngsters. And Mowatt, Byram, Cook and Taylor thrived.
<p>
His managerial credentials might be unproven, but he understood Leeds and its fans. You lose someone like that at your peril. And to treat him as shabbily as Cellino did (sacking his assistant for no reason, slagging him off, making sure he left via the back door when he should have been cheered out of the front) meant the Italian lost any integrity he had in the eyes of the staff and fans.
<p>
Redfearn's partner, Lucy Ward, is currently taking Cellino to an employment tribunal for wrongful dismissal and sexual discrimination. She was also a long-serving member of Leeds staff, praised by former trainees such as Fabian Delph.
<p>
<b>8: Sam Byram:</b>
<p>
Again, opinion is divided on the full-back. Someone who was senior at the club last season tells me Byram was ready to sign a new contract. And his new manager, Slaven Bilic, says he believes he will become 'a great player.'
<p>
So to let his contract wind down to its final year left the club in a weak position in which they got half his true value from West Ham. And, again, for Cellino to slag him off in the press during negotiations, was classless at best.
<p>
<b>9: Superstition:</b>
<p>This is perhaps part of human nature. But Cellino takes it to the nth degree and, again, it suggests someone who is failing to look at reality or rationality.
<p>
Getting the programmes reprinted to 16b, having the pitch blessed, retiring the 17 shirt: it's not really addressing the key issues at the club.
<p>
<b>10: Fans:</b>
<p>Leeds United's biggest asset. Cellino has identified this himself. Yet, really, they've proven another pawn to be toyed with and fought against.
<p>
The fans ARE Leeds United. But really, Leeds United is being regarded as an extension of the owner. So we've had the pie tax, mistruths about fixture rearrangements, and then, last night, staff told not to speak to the press after a humiliating defeat.
<p>
What really should have happened was the manager coming out and apologising to all those who had traveled hundreds of miles to watch a completely abject display.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-20212825339130198332016-01-25T03:17:00.003-08:002016-01-25T03:20:48.902-08:00Return of the Mac<b>Brian McDermott says returning to Reading is like “going back to family” after his “bonkers” time at Leeds.</b>
<p>
The 54-year-old has returned for a second stint at the Royals.
<p>
His tenure at Elland Road ended in farce after he was TWICE sacked by owner Massimo Cellino.
<p>
Now McDermott is back among friends — and loving it.
<p>
He said: “A lot of pals warned me ‘never go back’, but this feels right and I’m really enjoying it.
<p>
“I had a few opportunities to go back into management but they didn’t feel right. This is a bit like going back to family.
<p>
“Me and the director of football, Nicky Hammond, go back a long way.
<p>
“And I’ve known some of the players since they were kids of 10, 11 years old.
<p>
“If we can all pull in the same direction then we can get something alarming
going here.”
<p>
McDermott first joined Reading as a scout in 2000 and went on to
become manager.
<p>
He led the Royals back to the Premier League in 2012 before being controversially sacked by Anton Zingarevich in March 2013.
<p>
Now the club is under new Thai ownership and McDermott says every- thing is geared up for
promotion again.
<p>
McDermott added: “The fanbase is there, the stadium is great and we are building a new training centre.
<p>
“The owners have good ideas and are ambitious. Everything here is Premier League. We just need to get momentum going by giving the fans something to get behind.”
<p>
This optimism contrasts with his final months at Leeds. Cellino fired McDermott in January 2014 — before he had even bought the club or met the manager.
<p>
He was reinstated the next day, only to be sacked for good four months later. McDermott said: “It was a bonkers time, no doubt about it.
<p>
“I’d never seen anything like that before and hopefully never will again. It was tough, really difficult. What got me was that we didn’t even know each other.
<p>
“I think you have to build a relation- ship with someone before you make a judgement on them. I think my track record justified more time.”
<p>
He has nothing but praise for the long-suffering Leeds fans. McDermott added: “Until you become a part of that club, you don’t realise how big it is.
<p>
“I remember we went to Slovenia in pre-season and were outside this little pub in the middle of nowhere. There must have been 1,200 Leeds fans there and I thought, ‘wow,
this is big’.
<p>
“I was struck by everything about the place and envy the man who takes them back to the Premier League, because it will be huge.”
<p>
After leaving the Yorkshire giants, McDermott became chief scout at Arsenal and says it was an invaluable experience.
<p>
He added: “I was travelling to Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Portugal, it was a great job. The organisation there is top drawer and Arsene Wenger is obviously a fantastic football man.
<p>
“I learnt a lot from him and even identified a few players who might be useful to us here at Reading.”
<p>
<i>This article first appeared in The Sun on January 23rd 2016.</i>Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-15870467266075826872016-01-09T09:05:00.001-08:002016-01-09T09:15:16.447-08:00What was Cellino really like at Cagliari?<b>We know a lot about Massimo Cellino's ownership of Leeds, but I've always been a little hazy about his time at Cagliari.</b>
<p>
What are the facts and what is folklore?
<p>
Because the past can help us to predict the future, I asked Corriere della Serra's Giuseppe Amisani about Cellino.
<p>
Amisani got to know the maverick Italian very well during his two decades at Cagliari, although he emphasises their relationship was one of professional respect, not friendship.
<p>
<b>FAMILY:</b>
<p>
Amisani: "The family business was founded by the father of Massimo Cellino, who was called Ercole and was from Piedmont. Gradually, the children took over the family business. Massimo - who I call Max - has two brothers, Alberto and Giorgio, and two sisters, Rossana and Lucina.
<p>
Rossana is a doctor. The other children participated in various capacities in family activities. With the passage of time, Massimo took over the shares of his brothers and sisters. In June 1992, he decided to buy Cagliari Calcio."
<p>
<b>CAGLIARI:</b>
<p>
"Cellino was a good owner of Cagliari and was able to enhance the team and find many unknown stars.
<p>
With the fans he has always had a relationship of love and hate, depending on the results of the team.
<p>
When Cagliari were fine, everyone was happy. When the team was losing, the fans challenged the president.
<p>
In his final years as president, his enthusiasm waned and so did his popularity, so he decided to sell everything.
<p>
He always tried to be on the side of the fans I would say, choosing to keep the prices of the tickets as low as he could.
<p>
He had so many sports directors and many coaches though, this is true. But the arrival of a large number of unknowns as Victor Ibarbo was possible thanks to his intuition.
<p>
He is a football expert, so his coaches always compared him to the technical director of the club."
<p>
<b>PERSONAL:</b>
<p>
"Max married his wife in 1983 after returning from Australia. He went there to get experience and to open a new market for the family business.
<p>
Speculation about his personal life? Well, the fans always focused only on the performance of the team. I'd say he was a good president, though perhaps a little eccentric. But he acted for the good of Cagliari.
<p>
Sometimes there were excesses and hasty decisions that he took on instinct. But this is Massimo Cellino."Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-15669923705094225922015-12-22T02:37:00.000-08:002016-01-03T08:51:17.703-08:00Dodgy Pictures, Lists of Demands & Badly Written Profiles – What *Women* are Doing Wrong Online<i>This article was first published on the <a href="http://www.all-sweetness-and-life.com/guest-post/dodgy-pictures-lists-of-demands-badly-written-profiles-what-women-are-doing-wrong-online/">Sweetness and Life blog</a>.</i>
<p>
<b>Going back into the dating game after a long relationship feels like being released from captivity.</b>
<p>
Suddenly I find myself in a bewildering, mystifying world; one which didn’t even exist when I was last on the ‘outside’.
<p>
A world of apps and swiping and chemistry tests and strange selfies.
<p>
I’ve been staggering along in the dark, grasping for the light switch, managing to see a little more with each tentative step.
<p>
And if I could say one thing to the ladies on these sites it would be this: please relax.
<p>
Now, I’ve heard there are a fair few oddballs and nasties on the male side. Men who post naked selfies and close ups of their todgers; men who lie about their age and even identity; men whose best friends are apparently their pets or cars; men who are just after a quick shag (shock news: there are a few women like this too); and, less humorously, men eager to make derogatory comments about someone’s weight or appearance.
<p>
But, come on: is this really the rule rather than the exception?
<p>
And does it warrant the sea of negativity and even hostility us men have to encounter as soon as we’ve logged on?
<p>
Let’s start with the profiles.
<p>
I’ve lost count of the number starting with ‘are there any decent men out there any more’, ‘so many weirdos’, ‘anyone normal?’ You get the gist.
<p>
That’s hardly a great start to any conversation and it makes you wonder, why the hell are you bothering in the first place? Now, I could be wrong, but I can’t imagine so many men begin their profiles in this way.
<p>
Then there are the shopping lists: must be at least 6”2, ripped, funny, strong, kind, sensitive, earn £80k plus, have good grammar and punctuation (often spelling grammar and punctuation incorrectly).
<p>
If you post something like that, you’d better sure as hell be perfect yourself.
<p>
I know it can be good to know what you want, especially based on the knowledge and experience gleaned from previous relationships – and, as we get older, none of us want to waste time with the wrong person - but whatever happened to spontaneity, open-mindedness and being surprised by the things life can sometimes throw up?
<p>
In fact, isn't this what makes life worth living?
<p>
Then you get the don'ts: must not be boring, over-confident, a player, clingy etc etc. Followed by the common “if you’re only going to message me ‘hi, how are you,’ I will not reply.” Charming.
<p>
So add ‘must have the wit of Stephen Fry’ to that shopping list above (presumably along with, ‘must have the body of Steven Gerrard’).
<p>
Because I’ve got something else to tell you ladies – a lot of your profiles aren’t that original or creative either.
<p>
Almost every one states you are ‘easy going’, which, sorry, is not number one on the list of traits I associate with the fairer sex.
<p>
Other favourites are ‘my kids are my world,’ ‘love a night curled up on the sofa as much as a night out clubbing,’ ‘love going to the gym,’ and ‘I’m only on here to have a look.’
<p>
And let’s talk about your profile pictures.
<p>
What’s with that weird trout pout, the one where you purse your lips while aiming your chin down to your neck?
<p>
I’ve seen lots of other strange choices of profile pic, including wedding photos, photos with kids and, strangest of all, just pictures of kids. Swipe right to that and you might be getting a knock on the door from Operation Yew Tree.
<p>
What’s struck me above all is what a callous world this can be.
<p>
If you approach a girl in a bar – even if you look like Quasimodo (be kind) – the chances are a witty one liner will still at least elicit a response.
<p>
Not so in the world of online dating. If someone doesn’t like the look of you, even a Wildean remark will be met with the cold shoulder.
<p>
I’ve done this as well and it feels rude and wrong.
<p>
And if you do clear that initial hurdle of initiating a conversation, the shopping list scenario might again present itself.
<p>
A true example:
<p>
<b>Me:</b> Hi, how are you? (boring, granted)
<p>
<b>Them:</b> Fine thanks. Can you tell me: what you want from a relationship; whether you want kids; how you would bring up your kids; what you do in your spare time; what your career aspirations are?
<p>
<b>Me:</b> Can I come back to you in a few months while I work this out for myself?
<p>
If conversation does continue, you often then go off into the netherworlds of WhatsApp and Snapchat.
<p>
Or, for the older among us, texting - or even a real-life conversation.
<p>
It’s a wonder you ever get out on that first date… and there’s a whole new article to write about that.
Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-62231018796061732652015-11-20T05:26:00.001-08:002015-11-20T05:33:24.683-08:00The decline of a legend: Mitchell's memories of Lomu<b>John Mitchell remembers Jonah Lomu sitting forlornly in the All Blacks dressing room in Wellington following a game against Fiji in June 2002.</b>
<p>
They had won the match convincingly, but Lomu had again performed poorly and coach Mitchell was unable to pinpoint why.
<p>
"An unknown winger had gone around Jonah very easily in the game to score," Mitchell, 51, told me.
<p>
"And I can still picture him sitting there in the changing room afterwards, looking bewildered. He was a shadow of his former self and we were at a loss to explain why.
<p>
"Afterwards I had to sit down with him and his manager and explain that he was not meeting the performances expected. It was very tough to do that.
<p>
"As an All Black, you have to meet incredibly high levels of performance, regardless of your reputation or how much I like you as the coach. And I really did like Jonah."
<p>
The reasons for the decline became clearer in 2003, when Lomu was diagnosed with a rare kidney disorder called nephrotic syndrome.
<p>
He had a transplant in 2004, but the complaint continued to dog him for the rest of his life, heavily contributing to his death on Tuesday at the age of just 40.
<p>
The warning signs had been there during a 2002 training camp in Coromandel, just a short time before that Fiji game.
<p>
"Jonah was really struggling with the anaerobic work we were doing," recalls Mitchell, who was All Blacks coach from 2001 to 2003.
<p>
"The data was telling us he was degenerating and we didn't know why. I don’t know if we were ever told the whole truth about it."
<p>
The winger managed to get into the All Blacks squad for the Autumn 2002 tour to the UK, but these games were to prove his last in an All Blacks jersey.
<p>
He came off at half time in the win over Wales in Cardiff after complaining of double vision and was taken to hospital.
<p>
"It was distressing to see this 180kg winger lying on a bed with lots of wires coming out of him," says Mitchell, who now runs a manufacturing business in South Africa.
<p>
"If I'm honest, I knew then that this was the end of his All Blacks career."
<p>
Mitchell's defining memory of Lomu is of the rampaging, unstoppable teenager he faced in the All Blacks trial in Napier in 1994 though.
<p>
The number eight had recently won his first cap, making him the 940th All Black. Lomu was soon to become the 941st, at just 19 years and 45 days of age, making him the youngest All Black in history.
<p>
"I remember sitting in a small aeroplane with him going to Napier for that probables v possibles match," Mitchell adds.
<p>
"He was a very quiet and unassuming young man, but when he got out of his seat after we landed I thought, 'wow, he's massive'.
<p>
"And in the game he was almost unstoppable, he really was. His pace, allied to his size and power, was just unbelievable. He also had soft hands and a lovely balance.
<p>
"They named the team after that game and Jonah was in, which was quite something at his age. We all went to the pub afterwards and I can remember going over to him to congratulate him and wish him luck.
<p>
"He was very humble and respectful. Who would have known at that stage that he was going to be the star of the World Cup the following year?
<p>
"The coach, Laurie Mains, drove him to become even better physically and mentally within the space of just a year. And I don’t think we will see anyone like him again.
<p>
"He transcended the sport. He was phenomenal."Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-39506396726342259062015-11-03T09:45:00.002-08:002015-11-03T09:45:23.777-08:00Leeds Fans United proposed takeover<b>I know this is emotional ground, because a lot of Leeds United followers would love to see the club fan owned.</b>
<p>
I'm an advocate of fan ownership and there seem to be few clubs where this would be more appropriate than Leeds United, who have a massive, passionate fanbase and a recent history of poor ownership.
<p>
I don't have any agenda or allegiance here, although a few will inevitably say otherwise. I've spoken to Dylan Thwaites previously and he seemed a decent man with good intentions.
<p>
However, I am cynical, as some have accused me of being on Twitter. I think journalists have to be.
<p>
On Friday, LFU announced it had reached an agreement in principle to buy Massimo Cellino's majority stake in the club. This followed a meeting between the Italian and LFU's Sharon Reid, though not with Thwaites as I understand it.
<p>
Cellino was feeling brittle and emotional following the reaction he had received from the home fans at Elland Road during the 2-0 defeat by Blackburn Rovers on Thursday night.
<p>
The level of vitriol shocked him and he decided overnight that he would be willing to sell. He feared for his safety; his wife, who had moved to a rented house in Belgravia in London, did not want to return; and Cellino was beginning to have serious doubts about his ability to deliver success.
<p>
So this was the background to the meeting. And Cellino's response to LFU was basically "if you can pay me the money then I will sell to you."
<p>
He didn't see this as being so strong as an agreement in principle, but I guess this depends on semantics. And he was surprised when LFU came out all guns blazing in the press, I'm told.
<p>
LFU are aware that there are other parties who are actively interested in buying the club and they want to ward them off, before committing money to a potentially losing cause or being used as a pawn, hence they want a legally binding exclusivity agreement in writing.
<p>
This would mean that Cellino could not negotiate with other parties during a certain period of time. My understanding is that the Italian is not willing to do that, but let's wait and see.
<p>
If you were him, would you sign such an agreement, potentially kiboshing a sale to another party?
<p>
LFU seem to have been a little hasty with their announcement, though perhaps they hoped it would really get the ball rolling and bring other investors on board.
<p>
They admit £500,000 has been pledged so far and that several "high net worth individuals" have shown an interest. They are also talking to institutional investors.
<p>
So this is very much a fundraising stage, hardly a "poised to go".
<p>
Thwaites also talked about using a "debt deferral system" to raise cash, so that loans could be paid back with interest "<i>when</i> we get in the Premier League".
<p>
Now, Leeds fans must be tired of hearing that presumption after it has been espoused by a procession of owners, including Cellino. "When we get in the Premier League": unfortunately easier said than done.
<p>
Thwaites says Leeds' value, in terms of equity, as stated at Companies House, is £30million. But the playing squad needs revamping and the club doesn't own its own stadium or training ground.
<p>
There are also other outstanding debts, running costs and a whole host of potentially expensive legal cases in process.
<p>
Thwaites believes LFU could "probably" complete the takeover within three months. And we will have to hope so.
<p>
Because Sam Byram is out of contract in the summer and I'm told the one real jewel in the playing squad, Lewis Cook, has a clause in his contract stating he can leave if the club is not promoted this season, which, let's face it, is not going to happen.
<p>
The mood Cellino is in at the moment, he doesn't want to invest any more of his own money in the club. He's hurt and has decided he wants out, at the right price.
<p>
There is a worrying potential for decline. So let's hope something positive does happen in the coming months.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-19929593035635535992015-10-19T03:41:00.000-07:002015-10-19T03:51:02.052-07:00Rosler responds to Leeds sacking<b>This morning I went to see Uwe Rosler at his home outside Stockport following his shock sacking by Leeds United.</b>
<p>
The German explained he wasn't able to say much because of "legal matters", presumably relating to his severance deal with the club.
<p>
However, he did tell me: "I didn't see that (the sack) coming at all.
<p>
"I always had a good relationship with the owner and he had talked about wanting to build."
<p>
And it's true that little more than two weeks ago, Massimo Cellino had said Rosler was the perfect manager for him and that he would appoint him again given the opportunity.
<p>
Yet he pulled the trigger following the last-gasp 2-1 home defeat by Brighton on Saturday.
<p>
Now, it seems a truism that the best route to success in football is stability. That's not always the case, as Watford showed last season, changing manager several times yet still being promoted to the Premier League.
<p>
What you DO need, however - and what Watford did have - is continuity of culture and philosophy from the top of the club.
<p>
So what is the footballing culture and philosophy of Leeds United under Massimo Cellino?
<p>
The Italian has had six managers in 18 months of ownership, each with a completely different style of football and man-management. He has also had several different chief executives.
<p>
Last summer, most of the signings came from the Italian second division and in came a managerial novice with (we were told) great coaching ability, Dave Hockaday.
<p>
Hockaday quickly came and went and in came a foreign coach, Darko Milanic. He was deemed too defensive. Following a highly successful stint as caretaker and, perhaps, a lack of other choices, Cellino went for the homegrown option in Neil Redfearn.
<p>
And that (to me, anyway) seemed a good fit. Redfearn knew Leeds United inside out and had brought through the likes of Sam Byram, Lewis Cook and Alex Mowatt at the club's academy.
<p>
And he did well. Until Cellino took away his assistant, Steve Thompson, for reasons which are still not clear even now. Thompson, currently assistant to Simon Grayson at Preston North End, has not been given a clear reason for his suspension and has decided to move on and get on with his job at North End.
<p>
Then, of course, there were the 'sicknote six', who, at the very least, thought they could pull out of a game against Charlton for questionable reasons without facing censure from the club.
<p>
In the summer, Redfearn's contract as head coach was not renewed and he decided to move on.
<p>
From my conversations with Cellino, it became clear the Italian had been frustrated that Redfearn had not been talking to him enough or heeding enough of his advice. "Why doesn't he call me?" he said.
<p>
Onto Rosler, an experienced and capable coach.
<p>
The recruitment in the summer was decent, with the emphasis on players with knowledge of the Championship, and there have been some promising performances. Results have been poor though, meaning Steve Evans, a combustible character who has plied his trade at unfashionable clubs, is now in the hotseat.
<p>
Six managers under Cellino - Brian McDermott, Hockaday, Milanic, Redfearn, Rosler and now Evans - each with a completely different style of management and a completely different style of football.
<P>
One is left feeling desperately sorry for the likes of Cook and Byram. Any young player needs developing and needs consistency of message and coaching.
<p>
That can often be the difference between a player reaching his full potential and being an also ran. Any player will tell you that. What might Byram have achieved had he been under the tutelage of Roberto Martinez at Everton instead of six different managers in 18 months at Leeds?
<p>
And did it help Rosler - or the player - when Cellino came out in the press and slated him for not signing a new contract, one which had been offered on worse terms than he is currently on?
<p>
And, of course, one is left feeling desperately sorry for the fans: again caught up on the whim of a capricious owner. It feels like groundhog day. There was stability with Adam Pearson and Rosler, just like there was stability with Matt Child and Redfearn last season, and now, again, there is none. And so the cycle goes on.
<p>
Always someone else's fault and always better days ahead. Only it never quite works out like that.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-11776690517456796652015-05-27T09:07:00.001-07:002015-05-27T09:07:06.210-07:00Steve Head sacked after a few days by Cellino<b>I've been a bit confused about the case of Steve Head, as I'm sure you have.</b>
<p>
Different agents told me they had held talks with Head in his capacity as the new head of recruitment for Leeds United.
<p>
Head - who had a similar role with Norwich City and who is highly regarded in the game following spells with Fulham and even England - was brought to the club by new executive director Adam Pearson.
<p>
He signed a contract on Friday and Pearson was delighted to have got him on board, another piece in the jigsaw he is assembling at Elland Road.
<p>
All that was now required was the signature of Massimo Cellino. And perhaps you can guess where this is going.
<p>
On Tuesday, Cellino asked where Head was, only to be informed he had gone on holiday, a holiday which had been booked several months earlier, before Leeds United were ever on the scene.
<p>
The Italian was furious, saying he should be working for Leeds United, not on holiday. And he tore the contract up.
<p>
So that was that. Head basically lasted five days in the job, if you can call it that.
<p>
Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-29470061205148658572015-05-07T23:54:00.001-07:002015-05-08T04:02:35.189-07:00Another day at Leeds United: Cook, leaked lists and bung allegations<b>Forget the General Election - Thursday was another calamitous and chaotic evening at Elland Road.</b>
<p>
First came news of a 'summer transfer list' Neil Redfearn had submitted to Massimo Cellino.
<p>
What immediately struck me was that these were exactly the types of players Cellino would NOT want. They were almost exclusively veterans likely to command big wages.
<p>
The Italian has spent the last year getting RID of exactly that type of player at Elland Road and has always been clear he wants to focus on young players of promise.
<p>
Two of the bright spots of the last year - perhaps the only bright spots - have been a reduction in the overall wage bill and the emergence of a young core to the team, largely facilitated by the exodus of old timers.
<p>
So the list, including Charlie Adam, Joey Barton, Jason Shackell, Tom Ince and Matt Phillips was so unlikely to be sanctioned by Cellino that it made you wonder who had released it and why.
<p>
After some investigating, I found out that some of the names were on a list given by Redfearn to Cellino in January, and others weren't.
<p>
On another note (or list), Cellino has spoken privately about Redfearn giving him the names of players he wanted to offload earlier in the season. The Italian said he was shocked by the names, which he refused to disclose.
<p>
Anyway, this was all merely an aperitif, because the main action of the evening was still to come.
<p>
First of all, the BBC's Adam Pope reported receiving a text from Cellino at 9.14pm, telling him "we have just signed the Cook contract".
<p>
It turned out there was the still not inconsiderable hurdle of Lewis Cook himself having to sign the contract to overcome. And the contract extension was for just one more year, not the three that Cellino had previously promised.
<p>
And the thought arose: is there any other club that would release news of a contract renewal for a key player (which had not yet been signed by the player himself) via a text from the owner to a reporter? I can't think of one if there is.
<p>
An hour later, there was another story, making it apparent that Cellino's text was a desperate attempt to release good news to overshadow the bad. Fat chance of that though, because the bad news was nuclear.
<p>
It came via the well-respected football journalist David Anderson, from the Daily Mirror.
<p>
Anderson reported that not only was Cellino being investigated by the Football Association for alleged third-party ownership of the player Adryan, which we knew about, but also for an alleged six-figure transfer bung paid during the sale of striker Ross McCormack to Fulham last summer.
<p>
Anderson said he had seen documents which appeared to show that Cellino had signed off a payment of £185,000 to football agent Derek Day, collected on behalf of McCormack's adviser, Barry Hughes.
<p>
When asked for a response, Cellino replied: "Everything I done. For me was clear I had the club consultant and my accountants. I don't know many people in England, if I did something wrong I didn't do it on purpose."
<p>
It was hardly a denial and it really doesn't bode well for the club. As we all know, saying you didn't do something on purpose isn't a defence to most offences.
<p>
And again: would any other club release a response to such a serious allegation via a text from the owner, which was barely even legible? Wouldn't other clubs produce a considered response via official channels?
<p>
As I write this update, at 10.20am on Friday morning, there has been no further response from the club. Perhaps that isn't surprising, because they don't have a chief executive or a head of communications.
<p>
Graham Bean, who was acting as a consultant for the club at the time of both the McCormack and Adryan transfers, was reported by the Mirror as saying: "Mr Cellino was the club signatory at all times and he agreed all payments relating to Ross McCormack's transfer."
<p>
Yesterday, when I said this club lurches from calamity to calamity on a weekly basis, people pointed out that I was wrong - that in fact this happens on at least a daily basis.
<p>
And I think they were right.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-77663015807969142212015-05-06T23:44:00.001-07:002015-05-07T05:00:54.059-07:00Cellino returns<b>We're now more than a year into Massimo Cellino's reign at Leeds United, and it's hard to make a case that the club is in a better place than when he arrived.</b>
<p>
When I spoke to the Italian on Sunday, on the day his ban expired, he told me: "Compared to last summer, it is completely different. In terms of the cost, the number of players. From that I am quite happy."
<p>
Yet he sounded a little forlorn and also admitted to being worried about going into Elland Road the following day: because of what he might encounter and because of the amount of work he would have to do.
<p>
Yesterday we found out that workload had increased even more - the Football Association is investigating the transfer of Brazilian Adryan last summer and a possible issue of third-party ownership.
<p>
Cellino said he was meeting FA officials about the issue today (Thursday) but insisted there was no case for him to answer and that everything had been above board.
<p>
Most would agree that the little playmaker hasn't been worth the trouble, struggling to adjust to the demands of the English game and barely featuring since Christmas.
<p>
Add this to the Cameron Stewart case; to the legal cases still looming over Cellino in Italy; to the fact he hasn't bought the ground or training ground, as promised; that the club is desperately short of both coaching and administrative staff; to the fact pre-season still hasn't been organised; to the fact there isn't a head coach in place for next season - and you get the picture of a club in disarray.
<p>
Cellino said he was disappointed about the way things had been run during his three-month absence.
<p>
“Nothing has been sorted out and instead there is just shit," he told me.
<p>
“When I left, everyone was looking after their own skin rather than what was good for the club.
<p>
“Everything needs sorting out for next season – the sponsors, ground, lights, even pre-season.
<p>
“They told me we were booked for the pre-season. Then I find out the Liverpool under-17s are booked at the same place and there is only one training pitch. Amateurs.
<p>
“We also need a head of press, a head of the academy, a sporting director, a club secretary.
<p>
“This is unbelievable and quite scary. Andrew Umbers is a nice man, but this is hopeless.”
<p>
Cellino will now become chairman/ president, with Umbers stepping down as chairman but remaining on the board. This is a little bit of a comedown, because he had told people the chairmanship was his permanently.
<p>
At least with the Italian back in situ, we can expect more information about the way the club is being run, whether people like it, or choose to believe it.
<p>
In his absence, there was an unfortunate attempt to spin.
<p>
We were told that the 'sicknote six' had all been injured and that the board had been kept fully aware of the situation. There were holes in this explanation and it undermined head coach Neil Redfearn.
<p>
We were told that the head coach had never actually been told he couldn't pick Mirco Antenucci and that he was free to select who he wanted. Again, this was flawed.
<p>
And an email was sent to staff warning them of the consequences should they leak information. At the end of the day, this was just hurting the fans, who are far better informed than the hierarchy might give them credit for.
<p>
Cellino actually argued everyone focusses on Umbers too much though, because his role had essentially been as a figurehead in his absence and that he didn't wield the authority or importance people bestowed upon him.
<p>
So what about Redfearn? The question on everyone's lips.
<p>
“I am in love with Neil and I don’t want to talk to anyone else about the job,” Cellino said.
<p>
“I have always believed in him and I gave him his big chance.
<p>
“I made sure he had a clause guaranteeing he would pick the team because I don’t want a coach I control.
<p>
“If my coach is working in the right direction I will treat him better than anyone else in the world.
<p>
“I have made a lot of mistakes in my life and I don’t want to have this.
<p>
“But I need to decide whether Neil is best for the club and can lead us back to the Premier League."
<p>
It looks like sporting director Nicola Salerno will go, because Cellino wants to focus on English players.
<p>
And, interestingly, an olive branch has been held out to former assistant Steve Thompson, who was suspended without explanation last month.
<p>
Both Cellino and Umbers have phoned him and he was invited to the club's end of season awards dinner last weekend.
<p>
Perhaps understandably, Thompson declined the invitation. The League Manager's Association is advising him about his suspension and he's not happy about the way he was treated. Expect to hear more on that.
<p>
But you won't need me to tell you that. This does seem to be a club that lurches from crisis to crisis, mishap to mishap, almost on a weekly basis.
Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-29200835661032866462015-04-20T12:32:00.008-07:002015-04-21T05:37:29.908-07:00Cellino speaks: On the sicknote six and other matters<b>Massimo Cellino called me during the game against Charlton, early in the first half.</b>
<p>
Leeds were 1-0 up thanks to that rarest of occurrences - a Steve Morison goal.
<p>
“Can you believe it! A goal from Morison, fucking hell!” he laughed.
<p>
The Italian was ebullient, even though his son Eduardo had just informed him some of the travelling fans were chanting ‘Cellino out!’
<p>
He claimed this didn’t bother him, although I wasn’t entirely sure I believed him.
<p>
“I am used to it,” he said.
<p>
“I remember one game at Stadio San Paolo in Italy, when Cagliari were playing Napoli.
<p>
“There were 60,000 fans spitting at me and chanting ‘Massimo Cellino motherfucker’.
<p>
“I have experienced it, it’s ok.”
<p>
Having thousands of your OWN fans chanting this is a different matter of course. But anyway.
<p>
Cellino explained he had a long-standing, mutual animosity with the Napoli supporters.
<p>
When his side were struggling at the wrong end of Serie A one season, the Napoli supporters had sung the equivalent of “you’re going down” at his players and fans. This irked him.
<p>
So when Cagliari snatched an injury-time equaliser and then a winner against Napoli the following season, he celebrated effusively – and right in front of them.
<p>
Not only that, but cameras captured him mouthing “pieces of shit” in their direction.
<p>
This didn’t go down at all well, as you might expect, hence those clear and succinct chants of “Massimo Cellino motherfucker”.
<p>
This was Cellino’s retelling of the story and it seemed to encapsulate the man quite well: bearing a grudge, courting controversy, causing trouble.
<p>
The 58-year-old said he had asked the Football League’s permission to attend Leeds’ final home game of the season, against Rotherham.
<p>
The game takes place a day before his ban ends. And, unbeknown to him at the time, his own fans are planning a mass protest against him.
<p>
But, as I said, he claims not to be worried about such matters.
<p>
“If the fans want to kick someone, kick me,” he said.
<p>
He was rather more upset that his daughter, Eleonora, had been targeted on social media.
<p>
Which brings us onto the latest bizarre twist in the battle between the club’s board and manager Neil Redfearn.
<p>
I call it a battle, but it seems to be one-way and I’ve never been entirely sure what the ultimate objective is.
<p>
And when I talk about the club’s board, does this actually just mean Cellino?
<p>
Has he been involved in the running of the club during his ban?
<p>
I don’t know for sure, but others will, including Redfearn, Steve Thompson and Matt Child.
<p>
With two of them already having departed and one on the brink of going, there could well be more to come on this story, with the Football League potentially involved.
<p>
Cellino has always insisted he has respected the ban and left the running of the club to others while he's been away.
<p>
He said he had not heard about the six injured players until Friday evening but admitted it looked “weird”.
<p>
He asked why Redfearn hadn’t told chairman Andrew Umbers about the injuries and questioned why the issue couldn’t have been sorted out internally.
<p>
Umbers subsequently said the medical staff <i>had</i> made him aware of the news.
<p>
When this inconsistency was pointed out to him by Phil Hay, Umbers said Cellino wasn’t au fait with the day-to-day running of the club because of his ban.
<p>
I told Cellino that a lot of fans suspected <i>he</i> had instructed the players to strike, in order to undermine Redfearn, but he strenuously denied this.
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“I am not a coward and I’m not the sort of guy who tells his players to go on strike,” he said.
<p>
“I never use the people I love to protect me.
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“If I want to do something, I have the balls to come out and do it myself.
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“I only found out about these players pulling out on Friday evening. I can’t get involved with the club because of my ban.”
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But one thing is for sure – the players wouldn’t have pulled out if they thought Redfearn had the backing of Cellino.
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At the very least, they believed they could act with impunity in defying their manager.
<p>
Because, as of Saturday, people inside the club were privately arguing that Antenucci and Silvestri were genuinely injured, but no-one I spoke to attempted to argue that Del Fabro, Doukara, Cani and Bellusci were.
<p>
And, unprompted, Cellino said: “Perhaps they [the players] think they are doing something nice for me. But they are wrong.”
And he described what had happened as “embarrassing”.
<p>
Yet still, on Sunday evening, as Lewis Cook was recognised as the young apprentice of the year by the Football League, Leeds released a statement reiterating that all six had been genuinely injured on Thursday. Or was it Friday?
<p>
Perhaps, as Umbers said, this is a sign that Cellino isn’t involved in the running of the club, that he’s looking in from the outside.
<p>
So what about the long term?
<p>
Cellino has previously told me the club is not for sale but that “everything has its price”.
<p>
He says plenty of parties have shown an interest, and that Red Bull asked to see the books – to which they were informed the club was not for sale - but there have been no firm offers.
<p>
And the eccentric Italian says he is planning for next season.
<p>
“I don’t have much time, I want to see the team in the Premier League,” he said.
<p>
“I have to change a lot of things, keep the best players and bring in four new ones, the right ones.
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“The fans are going to enjoy next season so much, it will be a beautiful season, I promise to them.”
<p>
Where once proclamations like this seemed invigorating, prompting fans to think ‘maybe this crazy man can do what he says and take us back where we belong’, now I suspect they fall flat.
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Too much has happened to make most fans believe in him any more.
<p>
After all, the team was doing well, winning a lot of games, and with a nucleus of young players under a homegrown manager.
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Then it was all brought crashing down. Sabotaged even.
<p>
Why was Thompson suspended and why hasn’t he been replaced?
<p>
Who ultimately made that decision?
<p>
Why did six foreign players, all signed by Cellino, pull out on the eve of a game, to the complete bewilderment of the manager?
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What is the reasoning for these decisions and why is it always inconsistent and untimely, depending on the time of day and the person giving the explanations?
<p>
Even Cellino himself admitted it all looked 'weird'.
<p>
Too right.
<p>
So the fans can be excused for grimacing when they read promises about next season.
<p>
And what of Redfearn? It seems unlikely he will still be the head coach next term.
<p>
Cellino said: “My dream was always to think of Neil Redfearn.
<p>
“People forget, when I first came in, after just 24 hours, I put him on the bench. I liked him and believed in him straight away.
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“Then I put him in charge of the team. I loved him and we talked every day.
<p>
“And he helped me a lot, of course. And I appreciate that. And I thank god that we stayed in the Championship.
<p>
“But when I come back, I have to make a choice. I have to decide what is best for the club.”Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-13657407258154756092015-04-11T14:59:00.000-07:002015-04-12T05:29:25.031-07:00Calm to storm at Leeds United: How did it come to this?<b>Rewind to the start of April and Leeds United appeared to be sailing in calm waters.</b>
<p>
Unbeaten in five, safe from relegation and with their young players to the fore: a rare opportunity to relax and look forward to next season with some optimism.
<p>
That was until the storm of 'mad Thursday', with assistant manager Steve Thompson suspended without explanation and news emerging that the club's top scorer had effectively been put in mothballs.
<p>
Since then there have been three defeats in a row, the position of manager Neil Redfearn is in doubt, and there are fears that the futures of young guns Lewis Cook, Sam Byram, Alex Mowatt and Charlie Taylor could lie elsewhere.
<p>
So how did it come to this?
<p>
To try and understand, we need to go back to the end of last year, to December 30th to be precise, when Leeds United had just lost 2-0 away at Derby County. In truth, the scoreline flattered them, because they were completely outplayed.
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They were 20th in the table, just one point above the relegation zone. And I, for one, thought they would be relegated.
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It was at this point that Redfearn decided that if he was going down, he'd go down his way.
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So at the start of 2015, out went the diamond formation and in came 4-2-3-1. Out went Bianchi, Doukara and Antenucci, and in came Murphy, Morison and Taylor.
<p>
Massimo Cellino has always told me he has never, ever, told a manager who to select. But he's also quite clear that he oversees transfers. And it doesn't sit well with the owner if a manager overlooks these signings.
<p>
Anyway. Back to the turn of the year and the turn in fortunes. One January signing, Sol Bamba, made a difference. And Thompson started to make an impact, too. Murphy and Bamba, in particular, paid tribute to the help he had given them.
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And, perhaps most significantly of all, Redfearn started to get the best from the young guns he had nurtured through the club's academy.
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Results picked up dramatically. Among the impressive results were wins over high-flying Bournemouth and Middlesbrough. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Leeds were one of the form teams in the division.
<p>
Then came mad Thursday and that optimism evaporated.
<p>
Underlying all of this, from day one, has been a tension between the foreign and English contingents at the club - or perhaps more accurately, between the staff of the Cellino era and the rest.
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Despite the impressive results, the club's hierarchy were frustrated that the new signings - Montenegro, Cani, Doukara et al - were not getting a chance in the side.
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Whether or not this came direct from Cellino, who was banned (and in Miami), I can't say. But the frustrations of 'the board' were conveyed to the manager.
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Some of the foreign signings - Berardi, Bamba, Silvestre - mixed in with the rest, but the others didn't.
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And suddenly there was not only Salerno at training - who Redfearn always got on well with - but his 'assistant' as well, a young man named Andrea.
<p>
The 23-year-old Frenchman first came to the attention of the Cellinos when he was working in a furniture shop in Miami. Mrs Cellino came in as a customer and was impressed by how polite this young man was, and by the fact that he spoke a number of languages.
<p>
Soon he was brought over to the club in an intern capacity, initially working in the club shop and then assisting Salerno, acting as his interpreter. He was given a modest wage and put up in a flat in the city.
<p>
Other staff understandably became bemused when he started to turn up in the boardroom for matches though. And at meetings. And at the Thorp Arch training ground, where he would ask questions and occasionally voice opinions.
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Staff at Elland Road soon started to nickname him 'the spy' - and it stuck.
<p>
This is all perhaps something of an aside, although it adds to the slightly surreal picture at the club.
<p>
Tensions and mutual distrust between the two camps boiled over with the Antenucci affair. To recap, chairman Andrew Umbers told Redfearn he was not to select the striker because he was two goals away from triggering a clause that would give him another year's contract.
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Redfearn said he would go along with this, but only so long as he could be honest about the reasons for not picking the player. After all, his form had picked up and he'd scored in his last two games. But he was told he mustn't do that.
<p>
When Thompson and Redfearn arrived for work on the morning of Thursday April 2nd, Bellusci and Antenucci were laughing. That seemed strange, but the reason soon became clear when Thompson was handed a letter, signed by Nicola Salerno, informing him he had been suspended.
<p>
Redfearn later spoke to Antenucci. "I stuck up for you, Mirco, and my mate got suspended," he said. "Now you're laughing about it."
<p>
Antenucci felt pretty bad about that. And, to be fair, his attitude, in both training and the matches, has been good and he earned a place in the side. Cellino, in turn, denied that Redfearn had ever been forbidden from selecting the striker.
<p>
When I spoke to the club's Italian owner last week, he revealed Salerno had tendered his resignation, but said he hoped to talk him out of it. It's hard to escape the conclusion that Salerno - who is described as a gentleman by pretty much everyone at Elland Road - felt very awkward about the events of the last fortnight.
<p>
So the club has no assistant manager, no sporting director and a manager on the brink.
<p>
The reasons for Thompson's departure are still not entirely clear. Cellino told me it was because he had called Salerno a 'retard' after the Fulham game, which Leeds won 3-0.
<p>
He also said he was still committed to the club and that they needed four or five new signings to mount a promotion charge next season.
<p>
In short, what we have is a situation of confusion, uncertainty and turbulence.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-84588353238617927462015-04-04T01:21:00.002-07:002015-04-04T01:21:39.629-07:00Rewind to Red Bull interest October 2014In late October 2014, a source close to Massimo Cellino's regime told me the Italian had held talks with drinks giant Red Bull.
<p>
Apparently they were talking about the drinks taking up to a 50% stake in the club.
<p>
I ran a story and Cellino was very touchy about it indeed.
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He said he had held talks with a middleman acting for the company. And that the talks were not about Red Bull taking a significant stake at all, but about sponsorship and investment. Something like renaming the training ground.
<p>
Cellino insisted he was at the club for the long haul and had unfinished business.
<p>
The Daily Mail website ran a story claiming Red Bull were in takeover talks. Apparently the club sent them a legal letter about the story and got an apology. There were also suggestions they had received some minor financial compensation.
<p>
I went on TalkSport to talk about it all on Sunday November 2nd - essentially summing up what I've written above.
<p>
I then got a text from Massimo Cellino, forwarding on a text <i>he</i> had been sent by Andrew Umbers.
<p>
"Just been listening to simon Austin on national radio saying that you are considering selling the club to red bull and talks are ongoing.
<p>
"Not good news. Leaves a confused message to fans, sponsors and players."
<p>
That wasn't what I'd said, but anyway.
<p>
Things seem to have changed now. Cellino is banned and facing the prospect of further bans. He says he has received an offer and that it will be considered by the board.
<p>
A figure of £60 million has been mentioned, which you would imagine would be accepted, if it's true.
<p>
Still more to go on this.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-72171794361991082032015-04-03T02:59:00.000-07:002015-04-03T03:36:05.889-07:00Leeds United's 'mad Thursday' explained<b>Not for the first time in Massimo Cellino's Leeds' reign, fans were left scratching their heads yesterday and asking 'what was all that about?'</b>
<p>
At the start of the morning, news came through that assistant manager Steve Thompson had been suspended. This was a shock, to say the least.
<p>
Thompson had been given a letter, signed by Nicola Salerno, informing him he was suspended (with the word suspended spelt incorrectly) and that his contract, which expires this summer, would not be renewed.
<p>
Then, just as Neil Redfearn was about to attend his weekly press conference ahead of the Blackburn game on Saturday (understandably, he had considered cancelling it, before deciding he would front up to discuss a decision he had known nothing about), I wrote <a href="http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/6395006/Leeds-boss-told-you-cant-pick-top-scorer.html">this story for The Sun</a> revealing that the manager had been told he was not allowed to pick his top scorer, Mirco Antenucci.
<p>
The two stories, combined, gave a feeling of chaos, of a club in disarray. They weren't two random events that just happened to coincide though.
<p>
They were linked. And this is why.
<p>
Earlier in the week, Redfearn was told by chairman Andrew Umbers, in no uncertain terms, that he was not to select Antenucci because of a clause in his contract triggering an automatic one-year extension should he score 12 goals.
<p>
This would mean the striker staying at Elland Road for a further two seasons beyond the current one, as well as receiving a cash bonus.
<p>
This incentivised contract was seen as good business when it was agreed, as it would guarantee that the player would be rewarded only if he achieved. It was seen as insurance for the club. Everyone's a winner, or something like that.
<p>
Only Antenucci did get very close to reaching the stipulated target, and the club decided it didn't like the incentive any more. Antenucci is already 30; he has done fairly well although not outstandingly well in his first season; and the club's ownership situation is now up in the air.
<p>
These incentivised contracts are not unusual in football. And, even though it seems bizarre, this would not be the first time a club has wanted to avoid playing someone about to activate a clause.
<p>
But what is rather poor form is the fact that Umbers told Redfearn he could not disclose the real reason for not selecting Antenucci.
<p>
This put the manager in a difficult position. It's not hard to see why. Just consider if, at a press conference or in a post-match interview, he was asked why he had not selected the club's top scorer, a striker who had netted in his last two matches.
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He would have to lie. And that sat uneasily with an honest man of integrity like Redfearn - one who also has a clause in his contract stating he has full autonomy over team selection.
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So this caused tension between Redfearn and Umbers. The manager said he would not go along with what he had been told, and that if he couldn't pick Antenucci, he would at least be honest about the reason, saying it was a board decision.
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In response, Umbers told Redfearn he must not do that and there would be consequences should he do so. Was Cellino aware of all this and ultimately behind the decision?
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That's a question I could not answer definitively.
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Then there was something of a stand-off between Redfearn and the board.
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The club was obviously loath to suspend or sack the manager. He has done an excellent job this year, has brought through a fine crop of young homegrown players and is held in high esteem by the club's fans.
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So what was the next most severe thing they could do?
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Thompson was informed in the letter that he was being suspended because of the way he had been 'carrying out his duties'. But this doesn't wash.
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Surely it was Redfearn's place and his alone to decide on the way his assistant was carrying out his duties? And he has always said that he was delighted with what Thompson had done.
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And the form of the team, the morale of the team, has been excellent in 2015.
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It's hard to escape the conclusion that this was a way of clipping Redfearn's wings, of showing him who was boss, of rebuking him, without taking the ultimate step of targeting him directly.
<p>
It's fair to say that Cellino was not sure about Thompson's appointment in the first place and that it took the persistence of chief operating officer Matt Child to push his signing through.
<p>
Cellino was always slightly suspicious of him after that as well. Perhaps it was because the Italian thought the appointment impacted on his own relationship with Redfearn and his own involvement in the football side of things, but that's speculation.
<p>
For his part, Redfearn has always spoken highly of Cellino, most recently in an interview with the BBC last week.
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They genuinely get on and have a rapport. Having spent time with Cellino myself, I can vouch for the fact he can be extremely charismatic and inspirational. When he's in the mood, he can carry people along with his passion and vision.
<p>
And that can be powerful. At times like those, you genuinely think Leeds United could be onto big things with him at the helm.
<p>
Cellino can also be very astute and perceptive about people, and extremely knowledgeable about football.
<p>
But. And there are some serious buts. He can be extremely erratic and irrational. We have seen this when he has sacked people on a whim, in a fit of pique. Or when he has persisted with fights that were probably not worth fighting.
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He also has an unfortunate trait of wanting to be the centre of attention and I wonder whether he has enjoyed watching the club's success in 2015 from afar, while he is sat in Miami and not involved on the ground at Elland Road or Thorpe Arch.
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At times, he has seemed reminiscent of a child who has had a lavish birthday party laid on, only to find out he is ignored when it takes place.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-71272437313335909162015-03-27T16:09:00.001-07:002015-03-27T16:35:46.154-07:00Journalism: Forget the rules<i>"The dirty secret: journalism has always been horrible to get in; you always have to eat so much crap to find a place to stand. I waited tables for seven years, did writing on the side. If you're gonna get a job that's a little bit of a caper, that isn't really a job, that under ideal circumstances you get to at least leave the building and leave your desktop, go out, find people more interesting than you, learn about something, come back and tell other people about it - that should be hard to get into. That should be hard to do. No wonder everybody's lined up, trying to get into it. It beats working." David Carr, 2014.
</i>
<p>
That quote from the late, great New York Times writer David Carr, brilliantly encapsulates - far better than I ever could - why journalism is such a genuinely fantastic profession.
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Every day is different, you get to learn and write about interesting subjects, you meet fascinating people from all walks of life, and you can experience the thrill of breaking stories and setting the agenda.
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Sometimes it doesn't feel like that though.
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That's because we don't hear about those things as often as we hear about 'the rules'. The rules of presentation and tech. About how a story must be presented in a modular way, about how it must be a list, about how there must be a large photo every three paragraphs, about how we must churn out x number of stories per hour, about how it must be funny or quirky or grotesque in order to grab attention on Twitter.
<p>
This is anathema to journalism. It isn't what it should be about at all. It seems as if we've lost sight of what <i>is</i> important, what <i>has</i> always been important, and what <i>will</i> always be important - the story!
<p>
That's what makes people read a piece in the first place. It's what keeps people reading. And it's what gets them coming back. It's what creates an impact. All the rest is mere window dressing, or, in the words of General Charles Krulak, 'Hogwash'.
<p>
Anyway, having said all that, here are my rules on the subject (only joking, there are just two):
<p>
<b>1. Journalism isn't about rules:</b> it's about taking a story on its merits, thinking about the best way to tell it, and then coming up with the best means to present it.
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It's about having an instinct for what makes an interesting story in the first place and then being creative with it. If you go in with preconceived ideas about which types of story will work and how you're going to tell them and present them, then you've lost already.
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The story will be formulaic and boring. I've known plenty of recent stories that broke 'the rules' - they were very long and on left-field topics for example.
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But they were original and distinctive; they were interesting and intriguing. They were well told and well written, and well presented, with good pics/ video etc. And guess what, they often got almost a million hits in one day. And were widely shared. And people seemed to enjoy reading them and might have even learned something too.
<p>
Yes, they needed a compelling tagline for the headline and, as a result, for social media too. But that's always been the case, you've always needed to effectively grab the attention of the reader.
<p>
<b>2. It's about the story:</b> good stories are good stories - on any platform! It isn't rocket science. Once you have a good story, it's easy to tailor it for different platforms.
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You do have to come up with the idea for an interesting story in the first place though, and then put in the calls and the research to pull it off. And that is difficult.
<p>
But as I say, the layout/ tailoring to a platform is the easy bit. Most people can do that! People might make it sound like a science, but it isn't really. Frankly, it's bullshit baffling brains.
<p>
A poor story (predictable, dull subject; formulaically told and laid out; no insight) will be poor no matter how well it is laid out.
<p>
Some people might like the rules because this is easier than having the nous the instinct to generate, recognise and then tell a good story.
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That requires you to think on your feet and make a different judgement every time, because every story is by its very nature different. That's tougher. Easier, instead, to hide behind 'the rules'.
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If it were all about rules, then we may as well throw away our laptops and let the robots take over. I'm pretty sure that will never happen though, because a robot will never, ever, have the innate instinct, creativity and deftness to approach every piece differently and produce great journalism.
<p>
End of sermon. Amen.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717042398096510297.post-70875811809581736482015-03-24T09:14:00.001-07:002015-03-24T09:14:42.279-07:00Upheaval at Elland Road: Quick Cellino reactionI've had a quick chat with Massimo Cellino, so thought I'd add a quick note.
<p>
He says he will return to Leeds in the middle of April, ready to join the club at the end of his ban.
<p>
He claimed not to have been too involved in the falling out between Umbers and Child, because he's thousands of miles away and banned.
<p>
And he said he's not aware of any sale, unless it's been done without his knowledge (and he has resigned from the board obviously, but still).
<p>
And he thinks there will still be time to sort the contracts of Redfearn and the young guns. "There's no rush,' he said.
<p>
So there you go.Simon Austinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16976532968008598104noreply@blogger.com1