Interesting article in the Telegraph on Massimo. Words on Kenny tell a tale.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/leeds-united/11013554/Leeds-United-owner-Massimo-Cellino-tells-fans-We-will-do-this-my-way.html Leeds United owner Massimo Cellino tells fans: 'We will do this my way'Controversial Italian, who initially failed the 'fit and proper person' test for ownership is forthright and uncompromising in his approach to his Championship club It was late on Saturday night, several hours after *Leeds United* <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/Leeds-United/>’s friendly win over Dundee United, and only one person was left at Elland Road. “There were lights left on everywhere,” owner Massimo Cellino fumes. “I had to go round and turn them all off, one by one. Unbelievable.” The 58-year-old was still unhappy about the game as he furiously paced the corridors of the empty stadium. Unhappy with the players, who were “a long way from where they need to be”. Unhappy with the new manager, Dave Hockaday, who is “OK, but needs some babysitting”. Unhappy, even, with the ball boys. “After 10 minutes of the match I said ‘where are the ball boys?’ The ball boys were forgetting to bring the ball back.” If Cellino is like this after a friendly match, you wonder what he will be like during the season, which begins with a trip to Millwall on Saturday afternoon. An hour in the Italian’s presence feels like being caught in a whirlwind. The former Cagliari owner smokes constantly, twitches, runs his fingers through his hair nervously and talks furiously, barely giving you the opportunity to interrupt his stream of invective. Is there another owner like this in English football? After all, this is a man who spent 16 days in prison last year; who plays accomplished guitar with his own band in front of crowds of thousands; and who is so superstitious that he had all the No 17 seats removed from Cagliari’s stadium because of a fear of the number. He is also, of course, the first owner in English football to have failed the ‘fit and proper person’ test, although the decision was eventually overturned on appeal. In theory, the Football League could still bar him, as the full judgment in the fraud case is yet to be released. “Everything will be OK, I am going nowhere,” Cellino insists. Cellino finally bought the ailing *Championship* <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/competitions/championship/> club in April and quickly set about making his mark. There have been dozens of redundancies, Brian McDermott was replaced as manager by the unknown Hockaday, and the players were even made to bring in their own packed lunches and do their own laundry at the start of pre-season. “The whole culture of this club needed to change and it’s still not right,” he says. “We need passion, hard work and commitment from everyone, from the cleaners to the players. At the moment I don’t see that.” The players were made to do double training sessions during pre-season and have all been ordered to live in the city. “I told them that if you play for Leeds, you live in Leeds,” he says, slamming the table with his palm. “Otherwise, I will fire you. And on Fridays they will have to come to the hotel to eat together and sleep. “We have players living in Manchester, Liverpool, even Newcastle. Some were late for games because of the traffic. There were 10 players who came to the training ground last season to eat and shower before leaving without even training. And no one said anything! Have you ever heard of anything like this?” One player who has already fallen foul of these exacting standards is the veteran goalkeeper Paddy Kenny, who was excluded from the pre-season tour to Italy and is now up for sale. “Kenny turned up for pre-season training 20lbs overweight,” Cellino says. “Can you believe this? We offered him money to go. He said yes and then no. So I sent Kenny a letter, telling him he has to move from Manchester to Leeds and train six times a week, for three hours a day.” Kenny’s replacement, Marco Silvestre, is “a beautiful player, the best in the Championship and one of the best in the whole country,” Cellino insists. There have been four other signings, all from Italy, and at least three more are anticipated. Former Inter Milan and Sheffield Wednesday striker Benito Carbone, brought in as a ‘technical consultant’ to oversee the club’s academy, has gone the other way: his contract was terminated last week and he returned to his family. “When Carbone first arrived in Leeds I told him we are guests in this country and we have to respect these people,” Cellino explains. “I put Carbone in charge of the academy, with Neil Redfearn as his boss. Carbone didn’t like that Neil was his boss and tried to take advantage. “He went to Italy without permission, to see his sick mother, and wasn’t in Ireland when the under-21s had a game there. I can’t afford to have an Italian coach here who takes advantage. He gave them the chance to –––– him, he made a mistake. Who is going to be the next to make a mistake?” The former Cagliari owner admits he is a control freak. “I work 20 hours a day and, if I could, I would cut the grass on the pitch as well,” he admits. “I have never had a chief executive and never will. People tell me I take too much on and maybe they’re right, but that’s just the way I am.” There is one element of the Yorkshire club that he is undoubtedly satisfied with – the fans. “I am the sheriff of this city and I want the fans to be my deputies,” he says. “I feel that I was born here. I can identify with these fans – we have the same passion; we are willing to fight; and we can be a little bit...” He pauses. “Crazy”. Some of these blockaded him inside Elland Road when he first sacked McDermott in February, but he bears no ill feeling toward them. “I admire that. They’ve been treated badly for a long time and they are suspicious. I understand.” Some of the supporter outrage has been soothed by the prospect of watching the club’s young players fast-tracked into first-team duties: Sam Byram, Alex Mowatt, Chris Dawson and, in particular, Lewis Cook. “When I first saw this boy Cook play it was phenomenal,” Cellino says. “I wasn’t expecting to have someone so special playing for Leeds. He plays with personality and skill. When I found out he was 17, it was a fantastic surprise. But we must handle him in the right way. He is just 17 years old and we can –––– him up if we give him too much pressure. “We must be careful to look after him. I have seen a lot of special talents like this lost to the game in a terrible way. And I have also seen ordinary players make it to the top level because they sacrificed themselves for the game. My dream is to get six or seven Leeds players in the England team during my time here.” Cellino cannot be faulted for ambition, although the club’s supporters will be wary until there are tangible results on the field. At least the financial chaos that had afflicted the club appears to have subsided. “When I came into this club it had an income of about £30 million a year and costs of £42 million – crazy,” Cellino says. “It had lost more than £100 million in 12 years. Now we will only make losses of £3 to £4 million a year and I can sustain that for 100 years, believe me. “I have already applied to buy back Elland Road and we will do that by November. In time I will build a new training ground near the stadium. I don’t need to kiss the a--- of anyone, I am driving this bus.” With Cellino at the wheel, the Leeds fans had better buckle up. _______________________________________________ Leedslist mailing list Info and options: http://mailman.greennet.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist To unsubscribe, email [email protected] John 'Grampa' Sykes Rest In Peace old lad 28th Oct 1938 - 12 Nov 2013 MARCHING ON TOGETHER
