Former Leeds boss Darko Milanic is edging closer to a league title with Maribor.
Former Leeds manager Darko Milanic
Leeds United are enjoying a fine season under Garry Monk, with co-owner Massimo Cellino seemingly settled on a manager for the long-term, at long last.
The Italian has overseen a host of managerial changes during his time at Leeds, with Monk the seventh manager to serve under Cellino.
The current status of Cellino’s former Leeds managers is a mixed bag; Brian McDermott is out of work having been sacked by Reading last summer, Neil Redfearn is working as a pundit on Leeds United, whilst David Hockaday – Cellino’s first appointment – is the ‘Head of Male Football’ at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College, summing up what a poor appointment he was.
Elsewhere, Steve Evans has won almost half of his games in charge of League Two side Mansfield Town, whilst Uwe Rosler has Fleetwood Town challenging for promotion to the Championship.
The other, often forgotten manager in Cellino’s Leeds history is Darko Milanic, who was given just six games as Leeds boss in 2014, losing three and drawing three following a move from Austrian outfit Sturm Graz.
Milanic’s woeful stint at Leeds saw him lose his job in swift fashion even for Cellino, but the Slovenian has managed to rebuild his career by returning to former club Maribor.
The 49-year-old won more than half of his games during a five-year spell with Maribor between 2008 and 2013, and was re-appointed by the Slovenian side last year as a replacement for Krunoslav Jurcic.
Ex-Leeds United manager Darko Milanic
Milanic is already the most successful manager in Maribor’s history with ten trophies to his name, but he’s on the verge of adding another one to his cabinet, as Saturday’s 4-1 win over Aluminij leaves Maribor nine points clear at the top of the Slovenian top flight.
With 12 games to go, Maribor are in the box seat to win the title ahead of Olimipja Ljubljana, and winning the title would hand Maribor a passage into the second qualifying round for next season’s Champions League.
That would not only be huge for Maribor, but would also see Milanic resurrect his career from the scrapheap at Leeds to just a matter of games away from the Champions League group stage – and whilst Leeds fans certainly wouldn’t want Milanic back at Elland Road in place of Monk, it’s interesting to see him enjoy so much success at Maribor after his disastrous stint at Elland Road.
Do you think Milanic deserved more time at Leeds?
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