"If and when..": Phil Hay drops big 49ers claim at Leeds that'll leave fans fuming - opinion

The 49ers Enterprises would be expected to keep director of football Victor Orta and managing director Angus Kinnear at the club should they increase their control of Leeds United…

That is according to the ever-reliable Phil Hay of The Athletic, who dropped a pretty intriguing claim during a pre-game Q&A on Wednesday, where he replied to one supporter’s question about the futures of the two.

“If and when the 49ers do acquire more shares, I’m pretty sure they’d want to keep both Kinnear and Orta on board. I get the frustration and I can see why the programme notes might have riled you. This season hasn’t gone to plan. But over the course of four years with Bielsa, they’re very much in credit I feel. If Leeds stay up, the question from here will be how the club regain their old impetus.”

This is unlikely to go down well with much of the Elland Road faithful as many have been left frustrated by the way in which they conduct business and the recent January transfer window was another reminder of that.

The Yorkshire giants failed to bolster Marcelo Bielsa’s playing squad with a single signing, leaving the Argentine head coach hugely light on options due to an ongoing injury crisis.

And whilst that is showing signs of easing up, it’s still not a good situation as there are several first-team stars on the treatment table right now, including last season’s top goalscorer Patrick Bamford, influential midfielder Kalvin Phillps and captain Liam Cooper.

For instance, Bamford does not have any backup, so Bielsa has been without a senior centre-forward for the bulk of the season, whilst no one can play the Phillips role like the man himself.

Leeds have now gone eight transfer windows (four years) without signing a central midfielder