Former Leeds United striker Marcus Antonsson has slammed Andrea Radrizzani and Victor Orta for their lack of patience.
Antonsson, 27, left Leeds on a permanent deal last year to join Swedish giants Malmo after a miserable two seasons at Elland Road where he made just 21 appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals in the process.
He spent the 2017/18 season on loan at Blackburn as they were promoted to the Championship, but that did not help the Swedish forward earn a spot in the Yorkshire club’s first team once he returned.
Antonsson was signed by Leeds while Massimo Cellino was still owner and it seems as though he was not a fan of the change in the boardroom that saw Radrizzani buy the club and hire Orta as director of football.
When asked if Cellino was a madman, Antonsson told Fotboll Skanalen: “Yeah. That’s him. But if he likes you, he really likes you. When he took me to the office he told me he believes in me. It was during the heaviest period when I was not allowed to play at all, but he said I would continue to fight. But Wood poured into goal and there I sat on the bench. I’m not surprised they changed.
“He sold the club, and suddenly it was another owner and a new sports director. There I immediately felt that he didn’t want me.
“That’s how it works. They have no patience, and if you do not deliver directly when a new coach or a new sports manager comes in, it may make you leave. They push you away. “
OPINION
Antonsson was not good enough for Leeds, that is why he was moved on. It’s not a case of Radrizzani and Orta being impatient, it’s the fact that the 27-year-old spent his last season in England on loan at Blackburn in League One, but scored just eight goals in 34 appearances across all competitions. For a team that finished second in the league, those stats are not good enough and it was clear that if he cannot make it in the third-tier, he cannot in the second either. Antonsson had his chance and moving him on in the summer was not only the best decision for the club’s sake, but also his. Malmo are a massive club in Sweden. He is playing regularly for them and he will more than likely win silverware and play in Europe every season. Surely that is better than sitting in Leeds’ reserves or being loaned out to League One again.