Leeds United told to chase left-field appointment with ex-Rangers man who was assistant to Celtic boss

Leeds United have been told to consider Kevin Muscat as their next manager, with the former player enjoying domestic success in Australia as well as in Japan during his managerial career.

He won two league titles with Melbourne Victory during a 214-game spell before replacing now Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou at J-League side Yokohama F. Marinos.

He was an assistant to Postecoglou at Melbourne and took over from the Celtic manager in when he was named as Australia head coach in October 2013.

He clinched the league title with the club last season and they are currently second in the table with 15 games played this term. During his playing career he appeared for the likes of Rangers, Crystal Palace, Wolves and Millwall along with a number of clubs in Australia.

With Leeds searching for a permanent replacement to Sam Allardyce after he failed to keep the club in the Premier League during his four-game spell, ex-Premier League goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer has suggested the Whites should look to Muscat to lead them back out of the Championship.

Speaking on on the GegenPod Football Podcast, he said: “I’m going to throw you a curveball: what about someone like Kevin Muscat? If you think about the impact Ange Postecoglou has had at Celtic, playing the style of football he’s played…Kevin Muscat has gone into Yokohama and done the same if not probably elevated them even a little bit more.

“Do you think he would be someone that could potentially go to Leeds and bring in the style of football that Leeds fans would really like, and do you think that’s even possible now they’re in the Championship?”

Former Sunderland and Leeds player Michael Bridges was on the podcast with Schwarzer and he quickly came around to the idea of Muscat being appointed at the Whites.

Bridges added: “If I could get anybody it would be Ange Postecoglou … but what I like about what you suggested there is it [would be] a really interesting managerial appointment, because what [Muscat] has done is he has followed in Ange’s footsteps: Melbourne Victory and then gone on to do Yokohama Marinos.

“He’s also seen the style of play that Ange has liked and can adapt to, but I think Muscy’s put his own sprinkling on it and changed a few things up.

“If there’s anything that the fans of Leeds United love, they love somebody that’s a hard man. They’ve had Vinnie Jones there, they’ve had David Batty there.

“I’m sure Muscy with his past history in the English game and around the world with his tackles, that would spread, and I’m sure you’d get the players kicking a few on the field as well.

“So I like what you’ve said there. He’d have to go through the process and he’d have to impress everybody at the football club.

“I hadn’t even given that a thought until you mentioned it, but if that was the case I’d be all up for giving Kevin Muscat a glowing reference on that side of it, definitely.”