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Since Leeds United’s demise back in the early 2000s, they have gone through four different owners which include Gerald Krasner, Ken Bates, GFH (Gulf Finance House), and current owner Massimo Cellino. Both Krasner and Bates went about trying to settle the club’s debts, but did so at the cost of the club by selling off assets such as Elland Road, Thorpe Arch, and any player of value. Since then, Leeds United as a football club seem to have stagnated in the Championship and finish mid-table season after season since their promotion from League 1 in 2010.
If we fast-forward to present times, Leeds currently sit 16th in the Championship table, 11 points from a play-off position and 11 points from the bottom three. Current owner Cellino has been the club owner unofficially since February 7th 2014 due to the Football League’s approval of club ownership through their ‘fit and proper persons test’. Since then, Cellino has not been out of the news with his actions or reactions to events regarding Leeds United as a club. So the question still remains, has Massimo Cellino been given a fair shot at running Leeds United?
Since Cellino’s arrival to Leeds United and before he thought he was officially in charge, he unofficially sacked McDermott through a lawyer, which some the fans reacted angrily to. This episode had given Cellino much ctiticism amongst some of the Leeds faithful. Cellino’s critics seem to have been growing month after month as many fans see the off-field/on-field antics of the owner somewhat diminishing the football club and the team itself. These actions include continually sacking managers for which he is famous for from his time in the Italian league, and outbursts against players in public and staff at the club. Fans also seem to have been disappointed by his hiring/firing process of coaches, bringing in the likes of unknown Dave Hockaday and the sacking of Leeds fan favourite Neil Redfearn.
Despite his actions though, many Leeds United fans remain loyal to Cellino or at least willing to give him an opportunity to prove himself a worthy owner. It is well documented that Cellino was paying the running costs of Leeds United two months before he finally purchased the club in order to keep it from going into liquidation. Many fans class this as a saviour type of moment from Cellino and showed his passion for the club. It seems though, that the Football League had other plans and were not willing to allow Cellino a chance to try and run Leeds United without a fight. The Football League have spent the best past of two years chasing court documents from Italy and banning the Leeds owner over tax evasion issues in his home country. This constant tirade, banning orders and call to arms from the Football League seems to have slowed down the progression of Leeds United and kept the club in a constant battle of ownership.
It is then of no surprise that Cellino himself is reluctant to invest heavily in Leeds United whilst his ownership is under threat. He may be at some point forced to sell the outfit at a cut price due to Football League rulings. So you can forgive the fans for having a sense of doom and reluctance under Cellino’s regime as an owner, but you can also not blame fans for supporting him as well. According to Cellino himself, Leeds were losing over £1 million per month under GFH ownership and this was the reason the club ended up in a transfer embargo for the rest of the 2014/15 campaign. It seems he took on a lot more than he expected at Leeds and in my opinion, he can only blame himself as he did not do any due diligence on the club before purchase.
Since the fans and many others do not know the full extent of the clubs debts, wage bill and outgoings, it is difficult for them to understand how much Cellino has already put into the club money-wise, and if debts have been paid or rearranged. Despite some fans’ apparent hate for Cellino and the Football League’s constant tirade against him, he has shown some investment initiative, spending around £10-13 million on players, cleaning out the club’s high wage earners and allowing young players to come into the club and first team. Many fans would agree this is a great turnaround from the days of Ken Bates.
However, there remains one other big hurdle for Cellino as Leeds United owner and this comes in the form of GFH. They still own 25% of the club and have no real interest in investing alongside Cellino or selling the rest of their share to him until Leeds reach the Premier League riches. Anything Cellino does now only adds to the value of GFH’s share and makes it more expensive for him to buy back at a future time. Many fans were irritated by Cellino not buying back Elland Road as promised, but was he right not to buy back the ground right now? Or is Cellino holding off in order to keep GFH’s share price to a minimum? Only time will tell.
So whilst the fan base of Leeds United remains in a locked battle of whether the owner is worthy enough or not, it is clear that; if you look below the surface of his off field antics and misdemeanours as well as his short term ownership of two years, he needs more time to get it right. Cellino needs to be free from the Football League, from GFH and allowed time to put some effort and investment into making Leeds United once again a giant of English football back in the Premier League.
By Gary Elliott
Featured Image: All rights reserved by Terry George
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