Odd couple is a dream ticket

Ken Bates and Neil Warnock might be an odd couple but it could be the dream ticket for Leeds United over the next 18 months or so.

When news of Warnock's appointment at Elland Road filtered through on Saturday, the instant reaction of many was doom-laden. Two abrasive characters with too much to say for themselves, it's bound to be a disaster. Surely this one can only end in tears.

However, such assertions do Warnock a gross injustice. He is a man of many unrecognised qualities and his ability to up-manage is vastly under-rated.

At Sheffield United, he was widely regarded as a 'yes man' by the club's supporters because he never once spoke out of turn against chairman Kevin McCabe on what the fans perceived to be a lack of investment. Back then, it was always assumed that Warnock was prepared to swallow more than most managers because he was fulfilling a dream by managing his boyhood club.

However, then came Crystal Palace and a set of circumstances far more testing than anything he is likely to face at Elland Road, and while Warnock didn't leave Selhurst Park on the best of terms, it should be noted that a close friendship with former chairman Simon Jordan - a provocative character to say the least - remains intact.

Indeed, only at QPR did Warnock ever have money to spend, so it's rather amusing that two years at Loftus Road should feed the opinion that he won't tolerate a lack of resources at Leeds, compared with 30 years of scraping by prior to that.

Instead, I'd prefer to recall his tenure in west London for the fact that he remained tight-lipped and kept his dignity against a backdrop of absurd public remarks by Flavio Briatore, while his parting shot towards new owner Tony Fernandes was nothing worse than to suggest he listened to bad advice from dubious outside influences.

So the argument that Bates and Warnock are starting out on a path to outspoken self-destruction doesn't stack up. Warnock will manage Bates just like he has managed every other chairman in his career, by working out what makes him tick and humouring him. Some might call it brown-nosing, but it's merely a survival instinct. A manager needs his chairman onside if he wants time and space to do a job to the best of his ability.

And that's essentially the key to why this, in my opinion, is a great appointment for Leeds United. Because whether Leeds fans like it or not, Ken Bates is going nowhere.

The relationship between Bates and the new incumbent was paramount in my thinking when I was asked the question over a week ago: who would I appoint? There were a string of excellent candidates in the pipeline, many managers with proven track records at Championship level, some who of whom boasted better points-per-game ratios than Warnock. However, Warnock was always my preferred choice for the particular set of attributes that this job requires.

In terms of cultural fit, Leeds fans might not like to admit it, but Warnock isn't so far removed from the tradition of what they stand for. Indeed, if any chant sums up the DNA of this unique club, it's one that only they sing: "If you hate Leeds United, have a go!"

This is a club with a proud history built on aggression and confrontation. It's a club that loves to be hated, one that feeds on rubbing-up opponents the wrong way, and one that preys on the weak-willed who don't have the stomach for a fight. 'We are Leeds' is much more than a statement of identity, the sub-text tells you what you can do if you don't like it.

And though Warnock is an outsider, his hostility and animosity towards outsiders can soon win over the Elland Road faithful, channelling that in-built need for confrontation away from the chairman and back towards opponents for the greater good of the team.