Decision made by Leeds United in 2014 will still give supporters nightmares: View | OneFootball

FLW look back at Massimo Cellino's time in charge of the club.

The Massimo Cellino era is one that Leeds United supporters will be desperate to forget, as it was full of controversy, off-field drama, and inconsistent results.

Cellino spent three years as the owner of the Whites after buying a majority share in the club from GFH, and it’s fair to say it was a hectic period, with Leeds ultimately falling short of winning promotion and arguably going backwards during his tenure. The former Leeds owner was a controversial figure during his time at Elland Road, and he got things badly wrong with some of his first decisions in charge of the club.

Cellino arrived Elland Road in chaotic fashion, infamously sacking manager Brian McDermott on transfer deadline day in January 2014 despite not having officially taken over the club, and that would be a sign of things to come. McDermott was reinstated the following day, but it would only be a short reprieve for the former Reading manager, and he was sacked in the summer following a 15th-placed finish.

Dave Hockaday was then appointed, and had been out of work for around six months before he was given the role with Leeds, so it must be put down in the history books as one of the most bizarre managerial appointments English football has ever seen. Leeds fans were stunned when Cellino appointed Hockaday, who had only previously managed Forest Green Rovers in the National League, as McDermott's replacement, and as expected, he did not last long in the hot seat.

Massimo Cellino's era at Leeds United

Prior to the changing of head coach, the previous season had seen Leeds survive in the Championship, thanks to the goals of Ross McCormack, who was then sold to Fulham in the transfer window for a fee of around £11 million.

They would use the funds from the McCormack sale to put it towards no fewer than 15 signings that summer, and further in the January window, too. The majority were not domestic-based players, but from Serie A, B, and C.

It wouldn't last very long for the now 66-year-old in the 2014/15 season. Leeds lost three of their four opening league games against Millwall, Brighton and Watford, with Hockaday's only Championship triumph against Middlesbrough thanks to a late Billy Sharp goal.

However, it was in the EFL Cup that his Leeds tenure came to an end. Leeds lost 2-1 in dramatic fashion to Bradford City and Hockaday's job was no more.In that short period, they won twice but lost four of their opening games, with the fans immediately putting pressure on Cellino to bring in a new manager, which the trigger-happy owner would duly oblige to do.

Cellino would appoint Neil Redfearn to succeed the out of his depth Hockaday on a caretaker basis, with Darko Milanic then named as the new boss, but he would last just six games as well. Hockaday was the catalyst for a number of poor decisions that would follow that season.

On 1 December 2014, Cellino was even disqualified by the Football League and asked to resign from the club. The Football League took the decision after obtaining documents from an Italian court, where he was found guilty of tax evasion.

However, it was during the final weeks of that 2014/15 season that then Leeds boss Redfearn was told six members of his first-team squad were injured or unavailable for a game at Charlton Athletic, during a period which summed up Cellino's tenure in West Yorkshire. The infamous "sicknote six" which included the likes of Mirco Antenucci, Souleymane Doukara, Edgar Cani, Giuseppe Bellusci, Marco Silvestri, and Dario Del Fabro.

Fortunately, Redfearn would overcome that during his second spell to see out the campaign for Leeds and steady the ship somewhat. However, Uwe Rosler and Steve Evans would then take charge the following season, but neither of them could guide Leeds back to the top-flight under Cellino's control.

Cellino had been disqualified as Leeds United owner for a year during that ordeal, with Nicola Salerno overseeing many of the major decisions in his absence. The second time the Football League for an issue regarding Italian Tax Legislation thus failing the Football League's Owners and Directors Test.

The McDermott debacle and Hockaday appointment may have been the first major decisions, but it truly set the tone for a string of terrible decisions from the Italian with the club, and Cellino's first appointment kickstarted the chaotic running of the club that was to follow.

He revealed he would sell Leeds to Leeds United Fans Group 'Leeds Fans United', and four days later then announced a dramatic U-turn of his decision to sell the club, and accused the potential buyers of 'fairytales'. That was just the tip of the iceberg, as drama followed: from tax evasion, to being chased out of Elland Road in a taxi, to a string of unknwon players and managers, there was never a dull moment during those years with Cellino in charge.

Leeds went through six managers in three years with Cellino at the helm, and the club brought in 26 different players on permanent deals in order to cement their return to the Premier League after a decade away.

You only have to look at what Hockaday and Milanic have done since to understand just how chaotic that was. The appointment of Garry Monk in 2016 showed some signs of life in the club, but it took Andrea Radrizanni to buy a 50% stake in January 2017 to see the club get truly back on track shortly after.