Leeds United attacker Rodrigo has praised new manager Javi Gracia having briefly crossed paths at Valencia back in 2020.
The Whites had to wait more than two weeks to find a replacement for Jesse Marsch following his sacking.
A host of managers were targeted but chose not to join Leeds, it looked like the Whites would stick with Michael Skubala as interim manager.
Yet after a 1-0 defeat at Everton over the weekend, Leeds ramped up their efforts to bring in a new boss.
Javi Gracia held talks on Monday and by Tuesday afternoon, he was confirmed as the new Leeds manager on a ‘flexible’ contract.
The Spaniard returns to Premier League management for the first time since leaving Watford back in September 2019.
Gracia must now keep Leeds in the top flight and he will hope to have Rodrigo back available sooner rather than later.
Rodrigo hails new Leeds United boss Javi Gracia
One man at Leeds who knows Gracia is attacker Rodrigo, who is currently out injured.
Gracia took charge of Valencia back in 2020, when Rodrigo was still with the La Liga side.
Yet just a month later, Rodrigo was sold to Leeds United and the pair barely got time to work together.
This wasn’t really a Gracia decision; Valencia’s financial situation has been dire for some time now and when Leeds came with cash for Rodrigo, they had to sell.
Still, Rodrigo is familiar with Gracia’s methods and has now moved to praise the new Leeds boss.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Rodrigo noted that he had a ‘good experience’ working under Gracia, praising him as a ‘really good coach’.
Rodrigo also praised Gracia’s career as both a player and a manager in Spain, believing that his experience at Watford will work well for Leeds in the final weeks of the season.
“I worked with him for a short period of time before I came here, in Valencia,” said Rodrigo. “The year that I came here was the year that he arrived there. It was a good experience for me, with him and with his staff. A really good coach, really professional, so I think he will help us a lot – that’s what we all expect and we are looking forward to this new time with him and hope that we can finish the season in the best way possible.”
“As a player and as a coach, he did really great jobs as well there. In Watford, he did a really good job as well. I think it’s a very important point that he already has experience in the Premier League. Of course, it’s always football but it’s a different kind of football and the level of the league is really high, so I think it’s really important that he already has experience in the league and we are all looking forward to this new stage and hope that we can do things well now,” he added.
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