What Garry Monk must do to revive Leeds United - Lorimer
It’s a decision we can all get behind – a move which brings a very talented and well-regarded coach to Elland Road.
Steve Evans will probably feel a little unlucky at having to make way, but he said himself that he’d have no complaints if the club secured a credible replacement.
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Hide AdGarry Monk fits that bill. Credit to Steve, he did a good job for us and he moves on with his head held high, but I’m optimistic about the new set-up.
Back when Leeds United were looking at Bristol Rovers’ Darrell Clarke, I said that I was in favour of employing someone young and fresh, with plenty of ambition and fire in their belly.
I honestly think you need that drive to get this club going and what always struck me with Garry was the way he took his opportunity at Swansea City.
That was a massive ask of him – to be thrown into the manager’s job at a Premier League side, his first job in management – but he jumped on it, he put his stamp on things straight away and he backed himself to cope with the pressure.
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Hide AdI like that in a coach. I like to see someone believing that they’ve got what it takes.
And beyond that it’s great to see someone actually delivering. It’s no secret that he had a bad time at Swansea towards the end, and I’m sure that rankles, but much of his work there did him plenty of credit.
That’s why, at the age of 37, he’s seen as one of the top managerial prospects.
This is obviously a very different job for him. It’s in the Championship for one thing, a dog-eat-dog division which will be as tough as ever next season, and Leeds are far less familiar to him than Swansea were.
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Hide AdSwansea he knew inside out. They were his club for 10 years and more and that’s a big help when you take the step into management.
Here, the training ground, the stadium, the players, the staff – all of it will feel completely new.
He’ll want to immerse himself in it as quickly as possible and get his feet properly under the table.
His comments so far have hit the right notes. Front-foot attacking football is what everyone at Leeds has been craving – and, hopefully, it comes more quickly than the ‘heavy metal’ style Uwe Rosler tried to implement.
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Hide AdWe need to be more aggressive, and, when push comes to shove, we have to start scoring more goals.
That doesn’t mean the defence can be neglected, quite the opposite in fact, but I don’t think we were dominant in anywhere near enough games last season. The priority now must be recruitment of players, and as I’ve said many times that will be the biggest factor in our performance next term.
Having someone like Garry Monk to instil his methods and bring on the youngsters is a huge positive in my eyes, but he’d admit himself that you can only make the play-offs – or win promotion – with a squad that’s good enough to do that. Very few people produce miracles in the Championship.
Generally, the best sides and the best players walk away with the medals.
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Hide AdThat said, and without jumping the gun, Garry is the sort of driven character who will want to make that happen.
I doubt it’ll be in his mind to look for a steady, unspectacular season.
We all wanted something to perk us up and this appointment is a very positive one.
He’s got the fans behind him and a lot of goodwill. Let’s hope it clicks.