da dobrowin： Who will be the hero of a potential return to the big time at Leeds?
da bwin： It’s an open question, one that would provoke many a response. Marcelo Bielsa is the brains behind the team but Victor Orta was the man to thank for bringing the likes of Ben White and Eddie Nketiah to the club.
Andrea Radrizzani, however, has changed the landscape – certainly from an investment point of view.
While the Italian has made mistakes in the past, something he’s willingly admitted to, he could be on the verge of securing a colossal deal that puts Leeds back at the top table.
For better or for worse, it might change the face of the football club. If it doesn’t however, there would be no excuses left for a businessman who has come so far, yet still missed out on promotion.
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Leeds’ owner has been open in the past about possible investment at Elland Road but never has it felt so close and such a feasible option for Radrizzani.
The club is stuck at a crossroads now where investment this season would be massive, yet they also risk upsetting the upper powers who deal with profit and sustainability laws.
A few weeks ago he was his most transparent about new assets. In a lengthy interview with The Times, he claimed that Qatar Sports Investments could put them on a par with Manchester City.
Since he walked through the door at Thorp Arch, this was perhaps his biggest statement yet.
The 45-year-old has overseen a revival of sorts at Leeds. Before he appointed Bielsa, they were a team languishing in mid-table.
They now stand on the verge of the Premier League – they can nearly taste England’s top-flight again. Yet, at the same time, it has never felt so far away.
A third-placed finish and ultimate playoff failure last season has put the club under huge pressures, particularly with a wage bill now nearing £40m.
If they don’t achieve promotion in 2019/20, they will be staring at the need to cut that down significantly. Will Bielsa leave? It’s not beyond the realms of possibility given his track record.
After all, it was a surprise he even signed a new deal back in May.
But the sheer revenue QSI have earned from their relationship with European heavyweights PSG has been gigantic. It’s money that if replicated at Leeds would surely see them back among some of the elite clubs.
That is a distant dream but it’s certainly not impossible.
However big a stake Nasser al-Khelaifi does end up investing in Leeds, that’s if he even does, would leave Radrizzani and the club with huge demands.
The PSG owner is incredibly wealthy and if he does indeed plough money into Leeds this term, they’d be left with no excuses in terms of earning promotion now or further down the line.
It would lift the burden on the wage bill but it would also serve as a double-edged sword. Investment is a good thing but it might actually be the factor that sees Radrizzani leave Leeds altogether.
BBC journalist Adam Pope claimed in September that it wouldn’t be a surprise if he’d left in a year’s time. That tells you all you need to know.
Even if the Whites end up achieving promotion and backing from Qatar subsequently comes in over the summer instead, the pressure would be felt again.
The stresses of living up to what Radrizzani has documented about Man City would become a reality.
There is clearly a plan in place at Leeds. Angus Kinnear has a vision for a 50,000 capacity Elland Road if they go up and further investment would almost definitely benefit that.
It’s easy to forget just where added monetary muscle took Aston Villa. They were a club spiralling down until Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris pumped their financial prowess into the Midlands.
They eventually went up and a similar scenario could play out further north in England.
However, there would be a larger weight of anticipation. Not only would Leeds be expected to merely stay up in the Premier League, but competing among some of the best in the division seems to be on the agenda too.
If they failed to achieve promotion and eventually compete with the top ten Premier League clubs following QSI’s backing, the investment would surely be regarded as a big failure.
This deal has the potential to be game-changing for Leeds, but it might also be the tectonic shift that sees Radrizzani lose his job.
He and Leeds need to tread very carefully and come to the best possible agreement for the club’s future.