Leeds United have hired highly rated coach Michael Skubala to take charge of the club’s under-21 side. Skubala has been appointed as a permanent replacement for Mark Jackson, who left the role earlier this year in order to take up a first-team coaching position under Jesse Marsch.
The former FA employee is highly thought of and while he has worked with England’s development teams on a consultancy basis recently, he also coached the national futsal team. With the Premier League 2 season starting next week, Skubala will be expected to get to work immediately and the hope is he will be able to help produce even more talent for the first-team.
Here’s a look at just some of the tasks facing him as he gets to grips with the role.
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Build a relationship with Marsch
While results on the field will be important for Skubala, ultimately, his main objective is to help produce players for Marsch’s first-team. As such, it’s absolutely key that he has a strong working relationship with the head coach, and also Victor Orta, as he aims to build on the pathway that already exists between the senior and youth sides.
The Whites are extremely proud of the talent they have produced in recent years and the likes of Pascal Struijk, Joe Gelhardt, Cody Drameh and Sam Greenwood have all progressed into the first-team picture. However, the expectation is that more players can make the step up in the not-too-distant future and Skubala will be working with Marsch on that front.
The under-21s coach must understand what the American wants in a first-team player in terms of attributes and character and what he expects from those in every position across the park. Players will stand a good chance of breaking through into the first-team ranks if they can slot seamlessly into Marsch’s system and know instinctively what their role in the team is.
Skubala must also be trusted to look after those players who on the odd occasion step down to the under-21s in the pursuit of game time, especially if they are coming back from injury.
Get to know his squad
Skubala will already be running the rule over the group he'll be working with at Thorp Arch. However, with the Premier League 2 campaign getting underway in just over a week, he’s not exactly blessed with bags of time to get to know individuals fully before the action begins.
He’ll be working hard over the next few days to learn about his squad and he’ll also be keen to speak to players and coaching staff to get a firm grasp on the talent he has at his disposal and form his own opinions. Only then will he be able to decide on what his best XI is and where players can improve moving forward.
Those in the under-21 side will be keen to impress the new coach and over the coming days and weeks Skubala will learn plenty.
Assess the new signings
Leeds have bolstered their youth ranks with a couple of signings this summer with Sonny Perkins and Darko Gyabi expected to at least start the season in the under-21 side. Gyabi has been training with the first-team following his switch from Manchester City and was part of the squad that Marsch took to Australia.
The midfielder will have aspirations of making his first-team debut this season and it seems he is capable of featuring in the Premier League under Marsch at some point this year. However, he may well start the year representing Skubala’s under-21s.
The same can be said for Perkins, who turned down a contract at West Ham United to sign for the Whites. The forward will have his eyes on a spot in the first-team, but he will probably start the campaign by leading the line for the youth side against their Derby County counterparts at Pride Park next Friday.
Skubala will be keen to see both in action on the training ground over the coming days.
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