The former Leeds United manager has discussed his decision to leave Elland Road to take up a role at Newcastle United.

Former Leeds United manager Dennis Wise has expressed his regret over his decision to leave his role at Elland Road to take up an executive position at Newcastle United almost 18 years ago.

The former Wimbledon and Chelsea midfielder was initially linked with the Whites managerial role in the early weeks of the 2006/07 season after impressing during his time as boss at Swindon Town and was formally named as successor to Kevin Blackwell in October 2006. Despite kickstarting his reign with a win against Southend United, Wise struggled to find any consistency from his side throughout the season and they were condemned to relegation into League One when they were hit with a ten-point deduction for going into administration under former owner Ken Bates.

The departure of assistant manager Gus Poyet was a blow as Wise looked to help Leeds bounce back from relegation and a further setback came when the Whites were hit with another 15-point penalty. However, the Whites made an impressive start to the season as Wise was named as manager of the month for August and September and his side remained unbeaten until the first week of November.

However, Wise’s time as manager came to an unexpected end in January 2008 with Leeds sitting in third place in the table. An approach from Premier League club Newcastle United and a surprise offer to take up an executive role at St James Park proved too tempting to resist - and Wise has now admitted he has some regrets over his decision to leave his role at Elland Road.

Many regrets

Chairman Ken Bates watches from the stands.

placeholder image — Chairman Ken Bates watches from the stands.

He told The Coaches Voice: “He (Ken Bates) decided to appoint me as Leeds manager – maybe because he needed someone who was more hated than him! The rivalry between Chelsea and Leeds had been fierce ever since the great teams of the 1960s and ’70s had faced each other. With my Chelsea background it probably took the pressure off Ken a bit and placed it on me.

I took over with Leeds in the Championship relegation zone, and by the end of the season the club had gone into administration and been deducted 10 points. We didn’t have any money to spend and there was a huge wage bill and debt. We were due to kick off the next season in League One, having survived an expulsion vote from the Football League, but we did start with a 15-point deduction. It was really hard to deal with that, but I also had something of a chance to start afresh. I was able to have a clear out and cut the wage bill – it was £14.4m and I had to get it under £4m, which I did.

“We won our first seven games to quickly close the gap and by the turn of the year we were in the top three, when a fee was paid for me to go to Newcastle in an executive role. That was a big mistake on my part. I should have carried on and finished what I had started at Leeds. I don’t have many regrets, but I do have disappointments, and that is one of them.”

Structure

Dennis Wise advised Mike Ashley on transfer police (Image: Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images

After stepping into a role of Executive Director (Football) at Newcastle, Wise effectively acted to an advisor to the Newcastle board throughout his time at St James Park. Tasked with playing a role in transfer activity, co-ordinating scouting and identifying youth talent for the Magpies, Wise spent around 16 months in the North East before his departure was confirmed following the Mike Ashley’s decision to appoint Alan Shearer as interim manager. After reportedly coming into conflict with Magpies icon Kevin Keegan over controversial moves for Spanish striker Xisco and Uruguayan midfielder Ignacio Gonzalez during his second managerial reign on Tyneside, Wise’s departure was welcomed by Newcastle supporters.

The former England midfielder admitted he experienced difficulties during his time at the club - but stressed he made the most of the learning curve he experienced at St James Park.

He said: “Newcastle turned out to be a difficult period, although it was a good learning curve. At Swindon and Leeds I had learned to do deals within a financially sustainable structure. At Newcastle I ended up doing a lot, from top to bottom, also within a structure.

“It is good to learn to work within the capabilities of what is coming in to a club. At Newcastle I structured it in a way that was within the club’s means, and I believe Mike Ashley stayed within that structure – or wasn’t far off of it. There were some good decisions, but there were some bad ones as well. The fact that we weren’t collectively together was the main problem. The whole of a football club has to be collectively moving in the right direction, with no leakages. When I walked into the other clubs, I had been able to take total control of everything. But when you work with bigger personalities that want to have a bigger say in certain things, it doesn’t always work logistically.”

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