Marcelo Gallardo is reportedly on a three-man shortlist for the Leeds United manager's job, which includes Rayo Vallecano boss Andoni Iraola and Feyenoord manager Arne Slot.
Gallardo's name has not been suggested regularly in the last few days, and the Argentine doesn't even feature on the bookmakers' list of favourites.
But according to The Times, the legendary former River Plate manager is being considered by the Whites board as Jesse Marsch's successor.
Slot is currently the bookies' favourite, while Victor Orta has reportedly jetted out to Madrid to 'negotiate a deal' for Iraola.
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Here is everything you need to know about Gallardo, and his glorious career as both a player and manager...
Who is he?
Gallardo started his professional career at River Plate in 1993 and won seven major trophies during his first stint at the club, including the Copa Libertadores in 1996.
He packed his bags for Europe with a lucrative switch to AS Monaco in 1999. Gallardo took France by storm - scoring eight goals in 28 appearances to help guide a star-studded Monaco, which boasted the likes of Fabian Barthez, Willy Sagnol, Rafael Marquez, Ludovic Giuly and David Trezeguet, to the Ligue 1 title in his debut season.
The attacking midfielder was later named Ligue 1 Player of the Year, although he shared a tense relationship with Didier Deschamps once the 1998 World Cup winning captain replaced title-winning manager Claude Puel in 2001.
Gallardo returned to River Plate for just under four years before taking on his second spell in France with Paris Saint-Germain. He then enjoyed a brief stint in the MLS at DC United, and rounded his career off with his third spell at River Plate and a season at Uruguayan side Nacional.
He was also capped 44 times for Argentina - scoring 14 goals and seven assists in the process. Gallardo played at the 1998 World Cup as Argentina reached the quarter-finals, but was unable to feature at the 2002 World Cup, which saw La Albiceleste suffer elimination in the group stage. He also played under ex-Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa towards the end of his international career.
After winning the Uruguayan Primera Division title at Nacional de Montevideo, Gallardo obtained his coaching certificate and took on the manager's job to secure back-to-back league titles. He then moved onto River Plate and went onto oversee 424 matches during a successful eight-year reign.
He boasted a 53.77% win rate once he departed River Plate in November, and won 14 trophies, including two Copa Libertadores crowns, and is the most successful coach in the club's history.
Gallardo was also named South American Manager of the Year for three successive years in 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively.
How do his teams set-up?
Before Barcelona handed the reins to Quique Setien for his short-lived stint at the Camp Nou, the Spanish heavyweights had also been considering Gallardo for the job.
The Argentine plays a possession-based style, which applies heavy emphasize on building from the back.
Gallardo is known as a flexible coach and has achieved multiple successes at River Plate using a number of different formations throughout his glorious reign in Buenos Aires.
His earlier years at the club saw River Plate set-up in a 4-4-2 formation, which involved a higher line and plenty of attacking width. They gained notoriety as a counter-attacking machine, but Gallardo later placed an increased focus on possession and counter-pressing.
Gallardo encourages his players to be proactive rather than reactive and also likes his full-backs to support the attack. Perhaps one of the greatest exponents of that role was right-back Gonzalo Montiel, who now plays for Sevilla and lifted the World Cup with Argentina in 2022.
What has been said about him?
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola (via TNT Sports) in October 2019: “What Gallardo has done with River is incredible. Some things are inexplicable. Every year, three coaches are named as the best in the world (by FIFA). He’s never among them. I can’t understand it. It’s as if there’s nothing else in the world apart from Europe.”
Napoli forward Giovanni Simeone (via River Plate Hoy) in July 2021: “Gallardo seemed to me to be a very self-confident guy. It's hard to find people who convey that to you in such a direct way. That a coach brings out the best in a player is one of the things that is most valued."
Barcelona legend and manager Xavi (via Mundol Albiceleste): "I liked him when he played. He was a player with a lot of talent, he surely had to think because physically he wasn't strong. I think he's an intelligent person that thinks and wants to play football which we like in Barcelona. He appears to be a person with a big personality and he is destined to succeed."
Diego Maradona (via Archyde): “He is a tremendous coach, he lives for this and directs how he played. He’s like me, he thinks about the matches attacking, with intensity, like we played on the pitch. He deserves everything that happened to him in River, but enough old man, you got here, don’t you want to leave anything for others? “
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