‘I was shocked’: Leeds confirm Allardyce as manager after sacking Gracia

Sam Allardyce has spoken of his shock at being offered the Leeds job after he was confirmed as the manager for the remaining four games of the season. The 68-year-old has replaced Javi Gracia, who has been sacked after less than three months, and a heavily incentivised deal could earn him £3m if he guides the team clear of relegation.

Allardyce – who worked with the Leeds chief executive, Angus Kinnear, at West Ham – arrives with the club out of the relegation zone on goal difference and facing tough fixtures comprising trips to Manchester City and West Ham and home matches against Newcastle and Tottenham.

“[I was] shocked [to get the opportunity] – I never thought at this stage of the season there would be jobs offered,” Allardyce told TalkSport. “When the phone popped up with a name that I knew pretty well, I knew who it was straight away, so it took me about two seconds to say yes.”

Leeds have taken one point from their past five games, conceding 18 goals, and have sacked Gracia after 12 matches in charge. Allardyce previously rescued Sunderland and Crystal Palace from relegation but has not managed a club since his departure from West Brom in 2021 after the club dropped into the Championship. His first fixture is at City on Saturday.

“I know it [the club] is in a lot of trouble,” Allardyce said. “I have seen a lot of trouble before and – I could have done a little bit more time, but four games – hopefully we can make a difference and keep this fabulous club in the Premier League.”

Leeds announced the departure of Victor Orta as director of football on Tuesday and they have confirmed Allardyce’s backroom staff will include the former MK Dons manager Karl Robinson and the former Leeds striker Robbie Keane. Allardyce’s regular assistant Sammy Lee is on jury service.

“We have conceded 28 goals in the last 10 or 12 games, and the first thing that we’re going to have to do is to stop that if we are going to get out of trouble,” Allardyce said. “Because it means that we are needing to score two and three goals every game to try and win it and if we are left to do that, that would be nearly an impossible task.”