Sam Allardyce open to Leeds stay but warns side may struggle in second tier

Sam Allardyce has warned that Leeds could struggle in the Championship after his four-game interim tenure ended with relegation. After the 4-1 defeat by Tottenham at Elland Road – where two goals from Harry Kane lifted the striker’s Premier League tally to 30 for the season – Allardyce had a stark, unvarnished message for the Leeds board.

“There is a lot of work to be done here next season, even in the Championship,” said the 68-year-old, who is open to remaining in charge. “Goals need to be scored and you need goalscorers to score them. The squad is a little on the young side and lacks experience. As a squad they haven’t been good enough. You can’t keep making unforced errors. We gifted Tottenham three goals today. Which way does the club want to go?”

Allardyce said taking one point from his four games represented “a huge disappointment” but that he “could not blame” his players for lack of effort. The manager said his team had “given everything they have” but lamented: “you can’t keep making these errors at this level”.

He also did not blame a mutinous crowd for voicing its disapproval so loudly. “I’m disappointed for the fans,” said Allardyce. “They’re very entitled to show their disapproval. We tried all we could to get better results out of these players. But having not achieved one win has made me very disappointed in myself.”

After confirming his impending discussions with the Leeds hierarchy he made it clear there would be no holds barred. “We need to sit down and discuss the whole infrastructure of the club,” he said. “Recruitment is the number one factor for any manager. You can’t improve a player by 10%; it’s going to be two to three per cent.

“If I do anything more [in management] it will be here and these