Leeds United’s search for a new manager isn’t quite going to plan.
The Whites have scoured Europe looking for a new solution, heading to the Netherlands to speak to Arne Slot and Alfred Schreuder and Spain to speak to Andoni Iraola.
However, in our view, the Whites’ best solution may be closer to home.
Indeed, perhaps Leeds would be best off going for Yorkshire’s own Chris Wilder.
Yes, Wilder has struggled in recent years, being sacked by Middlesbrough and Sheffield United after poor performances, but when he has a rabid fanbase behind him and everyone pulling in the same direction, his football is magic.
Wilder is one of football’s true revolutionaries.
Don’t be fooled by the fact this is a man from Sheffield who speaks in a broad Yorkshire accent and looks like someone you’d see in your local pub in Leeds, this is someone who sees football in such a refreshing way.
Wilder’s tactics are incredible, overlapping centre-backs were a true tactical revolution, but, for some reason, he doesn’t get the credit he deserves.
There is one top manager who has seen what Wilder can do though, Marcelo Bielsa.
Bielsa spoke incredibly highly of Wilder during his first season at Leeds, stating that Wilder developed strategies that he just couldn’t get his head around.
“The way that he manages to set up his team awakens interest in me to learn from him,” Bielsa said.
“I would say the Sheffield United head coach is someone with new ideas and I have seen very few people with these ideas.”
“I saw things in Sheffield United that I wanted to develop and I couldn’t do it, I I don’t know the history of the head coach, but he has done very well.”
On top of this, Wilder would suit Leeds to a tee in terms of his character.
Simply put, Wilder is everything Jesse Marsch isn’t.
While Marsch came across as a very nice guy, sometimes he fluffed things up a bit too much and made excuses for poor performances and protected his players.
Wilder’s style is very different. This is a manager who isn’t afraid to publicly castigate his players in an attempt to raise standards and light fires under them.
This was never more evident than when Dean Henderson made a costly mistake with Liverpool back in 2019.
Despite only losing 1-0 to one of the best teams in Europe, Wilder was straight into Henderson after the game, and do you know what? He didn’t do it again, he was one of the Blades’ most important players that season as they avoided relegation.
A no-nonsense Yorkshireman is exactly what Leeds might need right now after spending the past year under an over-protective American.
Wilder is available, he’s well-suited to the job and he has the Bielsa seal of approval. In our view, he’s perfect for Leeds at this moment in time.
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