Leeds United's return to the Premier League last summer is a tale intimately linked to events which took place 16 years earlier, as the team tumbled out of the top flight.
That story, where Leeds executives spent hand-over-fist, leaving the club with mountainous debts culminated in a decade-and-a-half battle to return to footballing relevance, in order to restore the club's historic reputation.
Without the fall, there would have been no rise under Marcelo Bielsa; Leeds United's trajectory would have taken a vastly different path. At least, that is the account of a former Leeds administrator.
One figure who played a role at the beginning of that journey back to the Premier League was Gerald Krasner.
The insolvency expert was far from a popular character as difficult decisions were made at Leeds United, including the sale of the club to much-maligned former Chelsea chief Ken Bates,
Krasner's consortium took control of Leeds United in 2004, overseeing the club's demise during that campaign, as mounting debts led to player sale after player sale.
Speaking to PA Media, as quoted in The Independent, Krasner has praised current owner Andrea Radrizzani for re-establishing the club as a force in English football.
“With regards the current owner, I’ve nothing but respect and admiration for him.
“He’s put his money where his mouth is, he’s stabilised it in the first instance and then invested in probably the second-best manager Leeds have ever had,” Krasner said.
However, the administrator did issue a cautious plea to Radrizzani, insisting he must not take his eye off the ball, despite the club's current status, enjoying a purple patch on and off the pitch.
“Up to now, they haven’t put a foot wrong, but the nature of football is when you think it’s all going smoothly – beware.
“They were bottom of the table the day I bought them. They were £103 million in debt, which today is a decent player, but then was an absolute fortune, let’s be honest," Krasner remarked as to his own experience of working at Leeds United boardroom level.
Krasner also insists that without his consortium's intervention, there may not be a Leeds United to speak of today.
“We came in to do a job, which was to save them doing a Bury and disappearing from the Football League which was on the cards at that time.
“Although we got relegated and it took a long time to get back, without my consortium there is a good chance Leeds would not now be in existence and that’s a terrible thing to even contemplate.”
