Birmingham City forward Troy Deeney says Javi Gracia will be an 'instant success' at Elland Road, and has revealed why he has an affection for Leeds United.
The former Watford forward played under Gracia at Vicarage Road, and reached the FA Cup final in 2019. Gracia also guided the Hornets to an 11th place finish in the Premier League in his only full season but was sacked after losing three of his opening four league games the following campaign. But Deeney has continued to stay in contact with Gracia since his Watford exit, and is willing to offer him a helping hand if required.
"Javi Gracia will have instant success at Leeds. I really do believe that. I go back to my time at Watford when he was manager. He came in and replaced Marco Silva in January 2018 with a very quick turnaround," Deeney wrote in his column for The Sun.
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"Imagine what he can do now at a huge club with a very good team. And that’s what he has with the likes of Wilfried Gnonto, a contender for Young Player of the Year at the end of the season, the American boys Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie and winger Jack Harrison.
"The fact Javi has accepted this flexible contract, and taken on 100 per cent of the risk, it shows you the kind of man he is. And when good things happen to good people, you can’t help but like it.
"I have been texting him recently and he is really excited and so grateful for the opportunity. I follow quite a lot of Leeds pages on Twitter because my dad used to be a fan back in the day, so I have a vested interest. I said to Javi that if there was anything I could do to help, even if it is just getting him to understand just how big the club is."
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