Nuno Santos is a name that Leeds United fans could be forgiven for forgetting. The goalkeeper, now working as a coach, was with the England Road club for a season from 1998.
He didn’t actually get to play but that doesn’t mean Santos has forgotten about his time with Leeds, and speaking to the Portuguese media he’s explained how his move came about and what George Graham had really wanted from his scouting trip to Portugal.
In an interview with Diario de Noticias, Santos revealed that, as well as signing Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Graham had wanted Nuno Gomes: “Then I was able to play in England and at Leeds United, which was one of the most important clubs in the Premier League at the time.
“Coach George Graham came to Bonfim to watch a match between Vitoria Setúbal and Boavista [2-2 in May 1997], with the intention of taking Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Nuno Gomes to Leeds. Nuno Gomes was already set for Benfica, but eventually he took Jimmy and Bruno Ribeiro, who liked it a lot. I was referenced and went there a year later, after Bruno Ribeiro gave my name at a stage when Leeds needed a goalkeeper.”
it wasn’t to work out and Santos then moved to Benfica, where he also struggled. A serious arm injury hampered the goalkeeper’s career and he went on to have ten more clubs.
