YEP 16/6/25 Leeds United legend Howard Wilkinson reveals request to mark legacy as statue campaign begins

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Legendary ex-Leeds United manager Howard Wilkinson has one small request when it comes to marking his Elland Road legacy.

There have long been calls for the club to pay a lasting tribute to Wilkinson for not only guiding Leeds back to the top flight in 1990 but leading them to a First Division title two years later and helping to establish a talent production line at Thorp Arch. The opening of Leeds' first modern academy and training facility led to the development of a high number of homegrown stars who either represented the club or brought in crucial transfer fees.

Though former club owner Andrea Radrizzani once proposed renaming the training ground after Marcelo Bielsa, many Leeds fans have called for it to be renamed in Wilkinson's honour due to his input and legacy. There is also now a campaign to have Wilkinson's contribution to Leeds United officially recognised with a statue.

Howard Wilkinson Leeds legacy

WILKO92 - The Howard Wilkinson Legacy Project is a fan-driven campaign to raise around £140,000 to create a life-size statue of the former manager, near Elland Road Stadium. The project credits 'Wilko' with reviving a 'club in the doldrums' before promotion and an 'extraordinary' league championship, building the academy at Thorp Arch and helping to 'shape the future of English football' through his work as technical director of the FA and Chairman of the League Managers Association.

The Square Ball podcast conducted a special interview with Wilkinson, in which he was asked for his own personal view on how his legacy could be marked and remembered. His response was typically humble.

"Get Adriano Piazzaroli back to the Flying Pizza and have dinner for myself and my eight guests, and it's all on Adriano," he said.

Wilkinson was often seen in club media interviews and photos sporting a baseball cap with the Italian restaurant's logo on the front. Piazzaroli became general manager of the Roundhay establishment in 1975, got a share in 1984 and then bought the business by himself. He sold up in 2002 to Carlo Distefano. According to Wilkinson he 'probably' still has one of the baseball caps in his house, though his wife Sam deals with all his career memorabilia.

Dan Moylan, host of The Square Ball, asked Wilkinson if he was keen to 'downplay' how his legacy could be marked, Wilkinson responded: "I'm not keen to downplay it. I'm just slightly embarrassed, but very appreciative and also I'm not forgetting how lucky have I been, when you look at some of the things that happened, some of the people I know who have been involved and are involved in football compared with what I had at Leeds. So I had a relatively happy journey through the seasons at Leeds and look back on it with pleasure. There were downsides of course, there always are. I'm driving up from Sheffield, I'm driving back down to Sheffield. When I first accepted the Leeds offer, because of the persuasiveness of Leslie Silver and Bill Fotherby, who between them were two fantastic folks to work with and for. On a bleak day driving back from Leeds, you know, in reality, if my wife was in the car with me, she'd have said 'well it could be worse you could be down the pit tomorrow.'"

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