Spanish coach Javi Gracia could be set for his first job post Leeds United, with Almeria eyeing him up as their next manager.
That’s according to Super Deporte, who say Gracia is ‘one of the candidates’ to replace Vicente Moreno after he was sacked.
The newspaper explains that Moreno’s time at Almeria has come to an end, with the 5-1 defeat to Sevilla putting the finishing touch to his time at the club.
He becomes the second manager to be sacked this season following Quique Setién’s departure at Villarreal and ‘the casting’ is already on to find his replacement.
On that front, Javi Gracia is the name that ‘stands out’ as he tries to find his first job since his ill-fated spell with Leeds last season.
He took charge in February last year as a replacement for Jesse Marsch but only lasted 12 games at Elland Road before being sacked in May and replaced by Sam Allardyce for the final games of the season.
He’s been out of work since, but Almeria are now looking at him and the belief is that he is ‘best placed’ to replace Moreno.
That’s because he already knows the club after leading them for 50 games from 2013 to 2014, the year in which they were promoted to La Liga.
He left the club in June 2013 despite them suffering just one defeat in their last ten games of the season after he failed to reach a new deal with the club.
It seems they still have fond memories, though, and now consider him the favourite, unperturbed by the disaster that was his time at Leeds.
