Leeds United might be in a desperate situation heading into the Premier League’s final day but they cannot afford to give up until the final whistle blows against Tottenham Hotspur this Sunday.
Should the Yorkshire outfit be relegated back to the Championship, the club’s main priority should be finding a new manager to help steer the club back to the top flight, as it seems clear that Sam Allardyce won’t be sticking around for the long term.
However, the former Bolton Wanderers boss could yet play a huge part in Leeds’ next appointment, as The Athletic suggest that Graham Potter could be a viable option for the club if they remain in the Premier League.
Could Leeds appoint Potter?
The report from Phil Hay claims that Leeds will try to speak with the 48-year-old about the managerial vacancy after three impressive seasons at Brighton, which helped set the groundwork for their Europa League qualification under Roberto De Zerbi in this campaign.
Things didn’t work out for the English manager at Chelsea, but few managers would have succeeded with a bloated squad of young signings assembled with no tactical thought or long-term plans by Todd Boehly.
Of course, there are a lot of factors which need to be met if Leeds are to stay up this weekend but if Allardyce can pull off a miracle then it will seriously boost the club’s chances of keeping their best players and appointing a manager of Potter’s quality this summer.
Although he has just one trophy to his name in his career, winning the Swedish Cup with Ostersunds FK, he also took them from the third tier of Swedish football to the Europa League, which saw him earn a move to Swansea City, where he earned a tenth-placed finish before arriving at Brighton the following campaign.
He helped transform the Seagulls from relegation candidates into the impressive top-half outfit they are today, leaving the club in fourth position in the Premier League after six games when he joined Chelsea.
Even when things were going badly wrong for Potter at Stamford Bridge, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola urged Boehly to stick with him having sung his praises.
He said: “I would say to Todd Boehly, give him time. I know in big clubs, results are important but I’d say give him time.
“The second half is what he is. What he’s done at Brighton is outstanding, but…we need time in the first season. I had (Lionel) Messi in Barcelona my first season, so I didn’t need two seasons because Messi was there.”
Potter would certainly represent an exciting and ‘outstanding’ appointment for Leeds this summer and it is just another reason why fans will be praying that Allardyce can pull it out of the bag on Sunday against Spurs.