Imminent Leeds United arrival Victor Orta had to be physically removed from the Middlesbrough dressing room as he overstepped the mark during his controversial spell at the relegated Premier League club, according to reports.
Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Lee Sobot reported on his personal Twitter account on Monday that Orta is set to be confirmed as the new technical director of Leeds within days, and just a week after quitting as Boro recruitment chief.
Expecting ex-Middlesbrough man Victor Orta's arrival as #lufc's new technical director to be confirmed at some stage this mid-week #lufc
— Lee Sobot (@LeeSobotYEP) May 29, 2017
The imminent arrival, which continues owner Andrea Radrizzani’s shake-up of Leeds’ management structure, has not met with the acclaim of the Elland Road faithful.
Many took to social media to remark upon Orta’s central role in the transfer shake-up at Boro last summer that resulted in their relegation from the Premier League.
Intriguingly, the Gazette report that the Spaniard left the Riverside Stadium under a cloud after his signings flopped and his conduct raised eyebrows.
The north-east newspaper explain how Orta took it upon himself to charge into the Boro dressing room in the wake of their 3-1 Premier League defeat to Manchester United on 19 March.
The area for players and coaching staff is regarded as sacrosanct, with not even long-standing chairman and owner Steve Gibsion allowed there, and the arrival of Orta was unwelcome at that time.
The Gazette explain that two sources have told them the recruitment guru had to be physically removed from the changing area by goalkeeper coach Leo Percovich “after he barged in demanding to talk to ‘his’ players”.
The former Boro head of European recruitment was effectively the club’s transfer kingpin last summer but eyebrows were raised at the quality of the signings, who included Victor Valdes, Bad Guzan, Antonio Barragan, Bernardo Espinosa, Gaston Ramirez, Adama Traore, Viktor Fischer, Fabio, Maarten De Roon and Alvaro Negredo.
Orta’s impending appointment at Leeds comes days after Angus Kinnear was named as the club’s new managing director, replacing Ben Mansford, who quit as chief executive a week earlier.
Leeds are also on the hunt for a new manager following Garry Monk’s shock departure last week, with Orta’s former Boro colleague Aitor Karanka one of the frontrunners to take over in the Elland Road hotseat.