Garry Monk – a second return to Elland Road?
With the appointment of failed Wendies manager Carlos Carvalhal as the new Swansea boss, that particular route back into football for the increasingly slithery Garry Monk has been well and truly blocked off. Attention now turns to whose will be the next hapless posterior to occupy the Hillsborough Hot Seat, with Anglo-Dutch Leeds United fan Schteve McClaren being touted as a candidate in some quarters.
Another possibility, though, is that Monk himself could be interesting Sheffield’s second club – which raises the tantalising prospect of a second return this season for the scaly one to Elland Road. Garry rocked up to LS11 as recently as November of course, in charge of the Bonny Boro – but it wasn’t a good day for the fork-tongued former centre-half, as goals from Pablo Hernandez and Gjanni Alioski put Leeds two up, before a visually-impaired linesman gave a penalty against Luke Ayling for being wrestled to the ground by Daniel Ayala.
The 1-2 reverse at his former place of employment must have been a bitter pill to swallow for Monk, who had hoped to be the centre of attention for a more palatable reason – though he characteristically attempted to put a positive sheen on another defeat: “It wasn’t about me. It’s about my team and the players on the pitch and we’re disappointed with the result and should have got more”.
Garry had a fair bit of practice in his brief time in Smogland, dreaming up similar platitudes to deflect any blame from himself after each disappointing result for his expensively-assembled squad. Could it possibly be that he’ll be mouthing similar excuses after the visit of Wednesday to Leeds in mid-March? It would be a deeply satisfying reprise of his crestfallen demeanour after the Middlesbrough game, but it’s probably too much to hope for.
Surely, after all, even Wednesday can’t be that daft.
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