By Canadian Press

Leeds hires Sam Allardyce as manager after firing Gracia

May 3, 2023 | 3:47 AM

LEEDS, England (AP) — Sam Allardyce made an unlikely return to the Premier League on Wednesday when the 68-year-old former England coach was hired by Leeds until the end of the season after the relegation-threatened club fired manager Javi Gracia.

Allardyce’s last coaching role was at West Bromwich Albion for the second half of the 2020-21 season, when he failed in his short-term mission to keep the team in the Premier League.

That hasn’t stopped Leeds from turning to Allardyce, previously regarded as a survival specialist, as the replacement for Gracia, who leaves after two months in the job and after winning only three of his 12 games in charge.

Leeds lost five of its seven games in April and conceded 23 goals in that period — the most allowed in a single month in Premier League history. Gracia’s last game proved to be the 4-1 loss at Bournemouth on Sunday.

The team is in fourth-to-last place in the standings, only out of the relegation zone on goal difference with four games remaining.

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The Associated Press