Blackwell staying put
14 Sep 2006 - 08:19:09
Kevin Blackwell ignored Leeds fans' calls for him to be sacked during the 3-0 defeat to Sunderland at Elland Road on Wednesday and insists he will not quit.
It was the Whites' third straight home defeat and left the club languishing in the Championship drop zone, however Blackwell feels he can keep moving them forward in the long term.
He took over in 2004 when Leeds had been relegated from the Premiership with crippling debts and almost delivered promotion last season when they lost out in the play-off final to Watford.
However, his squad has been decimated by injuries already this term, while he has not been given sufficient funds to bolster the number of players he has to select from.
He said: "I'm going to keep on doing my job and I've already turned this club around from nothing.
"If you look where we've come from, with no players, then I think I can turn this around - no problem.
"I think the fans are fed-up with what has happened at Leeds. They can see a situation at Sunderland, where someone comes along and pumps millions into the club - and they think 'why can't it be us?'
"They've had four or five years of being kicked where it hurts and they've seen their best players being sold.
"I think the fans need to know the real truth about this football club - but I don't think it will come out in the short term.
"I think in the long term people will realise what a good job has been done at this football club."
He added: "We've been blighted by injuries, and the squad is paper-thin at the moment.
"Expectations are massive at this football club, particularly since we got to the play-off final last season.
"But we haven't been able to strengthen in the areas that we knew we needed to, because we have a financial burden at the football club which needs to be addressed.
"As a manager, it frustrates me - but I have to accept it. We've been trying to bring in loan signings. But the chairman (Ken Bates) says the finances at the moment are quite tight.
"It would nice to be competitive again in the transfer market, and we should be able to do that in 12 months' time when our debts have cleared."