Eddie can see the Gray lifting from Leeds
Leeds United have spent the last 14 years in the wilderness.
But club legend Eddie Gray has a feeling this could be the season the despair finally ends. Gray was the manager when the Yorkshire outfit were relegated from the Premier League in 2004. The Scot was also a dazzling presence on the left wing during the Don Revie era, when the famous white jerseys swept all before them at home, won the Fairs Cup twice and reached the 1975 European Cup Final. Their exile from the top flight could not have been imagined back then. They even dropped into League One for three seasons.
But after returning to the Championship in 2010, Leeds have never even made it to the play-offs. Managers have come and gone like buses, and Marcelo Bielsa is the 15th permanent boss since the club was last in the top flight.
But the man who has taken Argentina and Chile to World Cups looks as if he could lead the club to promotion.
United have lost just two of their first 15 league games and are firmly in the promotion picture as they head to Wigan this lunchtime.
Gray has seen plenty of false dawns and dashed hopes over the years, but he is confident Bielsa can see the job through.
“What I like about this manager is that he believes in the way he plays,” says the man whose haul of 12 Scotland caps would have been greater but for injury.
“He doesn’t change his system and he doesn’t worry about the opposition.
“He’s an experienced manager who has managed big football teams and big clubs before, so Leeds doesn’t faze him
“But I’m sure he will think there is a special atmosphere at Elland Road. The fans are right behind him because they think something special is brewing.
“The players believe in his methods and lots of other managers speak very highly of this guy.
“The talent is there. With Samuel Saiz and Pablo Hernandez, they have players with that extra bit of quality. But they need them to stay fit. “The Championship is such a tough division. It’s not easy to get out of and there is not much between first and 12th. “You could almost pick any pair from there to go up.
“Sheffield United and Middlesbrough are hard to beat and West Brom score a lot of goals. Frank Lampard has brought belief to Derby and they look a good side. “But Leeds are going about things in the right manner. It would be great for the club and the city to get back into the Premier League.”