Hard lessons for Blackwell with future still uncertain

Leeds United's coach, Kevin Blackwell, concedes to being on a steep learning curve since his arrival in the summer - one he knows could still end with him out of a job.

Blackwell takes charge of the team for tonight's Premiership game at Manchester City as the club's caretaker manager Eddie Gray is attending the wedding of his daughter Natalie. The situation is not a new one for Blackwell, who took over from Neil Warnock on a number of occasions while assistant manager at Sheffield United.

But it is the latest twist in a rollercoaster season which began with his surprise appointment as Peter Reid's right-hand man. When Reid was sacked, Blackwell was left unsure of his future.

"It's never nice to come into work and not know where you stand," he said. "I've been here for only 17 and a half weeks. The fact I'm counting the weeks gives you an insight into how I'm thinking.

"But I didn't know Peter when I first arrived and I was trying to learn from him and get used to his methods, but then he went. Now I'm trying to learn off Eddie. I'm learning from many different people and I'm going to use it as a positive because I'd like to think I'll be here a long time, but I don't know what's down the road.

"If new owners come in they might want their own people. That's football and you have to accept that and move on. But for now I'm thoroughly enjoying my time at Leeds. It's been a massive learning curve - including some of the wrong things I don't want to be learning about - but they are all useful experiences. Please God, I don't have to come across them again in football, but if I do then I will know how to handle it."

Leeds, who are likely to name an unchanged line-up for tonight's game, could move to within a point of City with victory, and though Kevin Keegan would love the Yorkshire side to undergo a revival, obviously not tonight.

The City manager has nothing but praise for the way Gray has gone about the job. He said: "I am one of those people who look at Leeds and think it's a shame what has happened there. You want Leeds, who are a big, big club to come through the problems they've got - but not against ourselves.

"Eddie Gray knows the club. He seems to have been there for 100 years. I used to play against him and he was a terrific player. He's always going to have the total respect of his players. He seems to have gone full circle. He's got a lot of loan players, all good players, but he has brought into the team guys who understand the Premiership and who know what it takes to stay in it.

"They've taken seven points out of nine - if they had done that at the start of the season then we'd be talking about the Champions' League. We are the opposite. We are finding points hard to come by and want to turn our season around."

Keegan said he may offload two or three players next month when the transfer window reopens. He would then hope to spend some of that cash, with a new goalkeeper the priority, as experienced cover for the former England No 1 David Seaman.

"We have to look at that position," said the City manager, who has only Kevin Stuhr Ellegaard as his other option. "Obviously because of the size of the squad here, two or three players could go in the transfer window if people come in with the right offers."