| Jabba's Comments |
Graham enjoyed a successful club career with numerous sides
across London in the 1970s, and after a spell in charge at
Millwall, returned to Highbury as a manager and built a team around
a solid defence that began to challenge the Northern domination of
the game. After bringing several trophies to the club, he left
under a cloud and an FA ban, being found guilty of accepting a bung
on a transfer deal. He probably did nothing more than what several
other managers did at the time - but the club he had served so well
left him to twist in the wind, and instead of making a clean breast
of it, he tried to wriggle out of the allegations.
With the manner of his departure from Leeds, it's hard to
disguise my contempt for this man so I won't even try. Brought in
by Caspian, he concentrated so much on sorting the defence out in
his first season that he forgot about scoring goals, passing the
ball in midfield and anything else normally associated with a
football team - he was Mr Goalless Draw.
In fairness, he picked up Hasselbaink for a bargain (recognising
a kindred spirit I guess) and under him, Harry Kewell and Lucas
Radebe really came into their own. The Youth Team were doing
brilliantly under Eddie Gray and Paul Hart but GG appeared to pay
it scant attention.
Having signed a long-term contract less than a year before, he
suddenly decided that he couldn't face living so far away from his
beloved London anymore - particularly now that his bung-taking had
been swept under the carpet and he was now back in the good books
of the Fleet Street slime. He headed down the M1 to Spurs as fast
as his Merc would carry him and in doing so did Leeds United the
greatest service possible - he left us with David O'Leary in place
and ready to take over.
Richard Allen says: You seem to be forgetting that in the time
Graham was at Leeds he sorted a mess out. Yeboah and Brolin were
both swinging the lead and Graham told them where to go; the team
spirit improved massively - compare the '96 League Cup performance
with the fight the team showed in e.g. (for Leeds) a meaningless
game at the end of the following season against Middlesbrough.
Graham said he would play it tight in '96-97 and wait until the
close season before spending. He was as good as his word, and in
'97-98 Leeds were one of the best attacking sides in the
Premiership. In the following close season, with european football
guaranteed, the board did not back Graham to take Leeds on to the
next stage, to challenge the likes of Man. U., Arsenal, Liverpool
and Chelsea. Once the season started, the board starting making
noises about money being available, but as Graham rightly pointed
out, who sells their best players at that stage of the season? I
don't blame Graham for leaving - O'Leary threatened to leave too if
there was no clear commitment by the board that funds would be
available. That's why he took so long signing the contract. Do you
seriously think that Graham would have failed to deliver trophies
if he had had anything like the funds available to him that O'Leary
has had?
Leeds lost the best possible manager for them, one who could have
delivered a dynasty of success similar to the Revie era, because
the board dithered at a crucial time. They weren't professional
enough to provide the money at the right time and they didn't fight
hard enough to keep Graham at Leeds. Since then Leeds have been
nearly men, instead of the trophy winners they had, and still have,
the potential to be. If Graham had still been the manager, Leeds
wouldn't keep being brushed aside when it comes to the crunch. It's
Leeds' loss and it's time the fans realised it. Graham's a great
manager, but the board didn't match him when it mattered. Leeds
ought to get Graham back as the manager and let him finish off the
job he started. Just match his ambition with the right funding this
time.
Richard Allen says: Born Bargeddie, Fife.
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