da bet7k： Leeds United released a club statement on Thursday afternoon stating that they had reluctantly accepted the resignation of manager Garry Monk.
da bet7： Owner and chairman Andrea Radrizzani, who only completed his takeover of the club on Tuesday, was ready to exercise an option to keep Monk at Elland Road for another 12 months following the expiry of his rolling contract in June, but the former Swansea City boss has decided to move on to pastures new.
After a number of mid-table finishes, former Whites owner Massimo Cellino appointed the 38-year-old on a 12-month rolling contract in order to try and lead the club back to the Premier League, but they narrowly missed out on a Championship play-off position despite spending the majority of the campaign in the top six.
As the Yorkshire outfit start the search for yet another new manager, here are five reasons Leeds fans should be glad Monk has gone…
He didn’t want to stay
Owner Andrea Radrizzani confirmed in the statement that he was keen to keep Monk at Elland Road for at least another 12 months but that the 38-year-old had no intention of committing his future to the Yorkshire outfit.
If he didn’t want to stay and build on the progress he clearly made this season in front of such a passionate set of supporters home and away, then Leeds fans certainly shouldn’t be losing too much sleep over his departure.
Away form
While they were strong at home, Leeds often struggled on the road this season and they only had the ninth best away record in the division.
Garry Monk’s side were beaten in 10 of their 23 away matches in the Championship and that simply isn’t good enough unless you have a near perfect record on your own patch.
It is form that ultimately cost them a play-off position and the 38-year-old’s replacement – whoever he may be – could help the club improve on their travels.
Bottling the play-offs
While Monk obviously did brilliantly in the first place to make Leeds play-off contenders this season, fans certainly won’t forget the way they bottled a chance of finally returning to the Premier League.
Following a 2-0 win against automatic promotion contenders Brighton and Hove Albion at Elland Road in March, the Yorkshire outfit were in fourth and had an eight-point advantage over seventh-place Fulham.
However, one win and just six points from their final eight Championship fixtures saw them end the campaign in seventh and five points behind the Cottagers, and it simply wasn’t good enough.
He couldn’t help when it mattered most
When Leeds started to pick up bad result after bad result in the closing stages of the season, Monk still had time to try and turn things around.
Huddersfield Town, Reading and Sheffield Wednesday were all in the same boat and all ended the season in the play-offs, and part of the blame has to be placed upon the shoulders of the 38-year-old.
Maybe it was his inexperience – although it’s difficult to use that argument considering he was up against the likes of Jaap Stam and David Wagner – but the Whites need a manager that can make a difference during the tough times.
They have time to find the right replacement
The fact that Monk has resigned just a couple of weeks after the end of the season means that Andrea Radrizzani has plenty of time to appoint a new manager – hopefully on a long-term contract – who will be committed to the club and who he will have a good working relationship with.
Leeds need to have everything settled by pre-season if they are to have a stable and successful campaign, and the early decision by Monk could just help them to be even more prepared for what is going to be another long and arduous Championship campaign.
Do you agree, Leeds fans? Let us know below.