Leeds United's Championship promotion rivals confirm 3-year deal for new manager
Leeds United are hoping they won’t have to face the new manager in May’s Championship play-offs.
Blackburn Rovers have confirmed the appointment of head coach Valerien Ismael as they look to continue their unexpected Championship promotion push.
The Lancashire club are currently sixth in the Championship and while there is a whopping 24 point gap between them and league leaders Leeds United, the chance remains that they could meet in the play-offs come May. Daniel Farke’s side are in an incredibly strong position to win automatic promotion, but the possibility of dropping from the top two is by no means impossible.
Much of the credit for Blackburn’s play-off push went to former manager John Eustace, who made the shock decision to leave Ewood Park for relegation strugglers Derby County earlier this month. And after a two-week search the promotion outsiders have now confirmed the appointment of Ismael on a three-year deal.
Blackburn appoint Ismael
The Frenchman has plenty of Championship experience with previous spells at Barnsley, West Bromwich Albion and Watford, but he has only faced Leeds once in his managerial career. That came during his time in charge of the Hornets, who were beaten 3-0 by Farke’s Leeds back in September 2023. Ismael boasts play-off experience with his first English club Barnsley - they lost their semi-final tie against Swansea City - and is hoping to guide his new club into the end-of-season knockout.
“I am delighted to welcome Valerien to the club,” Blackburn chief executive Steve Waggott said. “We were hugely impressed with Valerien throughout what was a rigorous recruitment process. He knows the Championship extremely well and what it takes to finish in the play-offs.”
Ismael on Blackburn job
“It feels very good for me to be here at Blackburn Rovers,” Ismael added of his appointment. “Since my childhood, Blackburn Rovers has been a big name. It’s a club I’ve come up against a lot in games in the Championship, and it’s always been a special name for me because that year was a very important year with Rovers winning the Premier League combined with memories with me.
“When you are a young player, you look at English football and Italian football, which was the same for me as a manager and a player. English football is something special for me, it’s something different, it feels different and the energy is different. I love it!”
Leeds have already faced Blackburn home and away, with the play-off hopefuls enjoying rare success. Of the 11 opponents Farke has faced twice this season, only Rovers and Lancashire rivals Burnley have avoided defeat, each taking four points from six on offer against the Whites.
And it seems only a disaster will lead to them meeting again before summer, with Leeds looking more like automatic promotion winners every week. A 16-game unbeaten run includes two late comeback wins over Sunderland and Sheffield United in the past two games, results which have opened up a five-point gap on the second-placed Blades and a seven-point cushion on Burnley in third.