Everton are in talks with Leeds United CEO to take up the role at the club under the Friedkin Group, according to reports in the Athletic today.
The move will come as a surprise for Everton fans who will remember Kinnear as one of two CEOs – the other being Burnley’s Alan Pace – to write to the Premier League and demand an investigation that ultimately led to a 10-point deducation for the club.
Kinnear was one of the more outspoken critics of Everton as the Premier League attempted to deduct a total of 23 points from the club over the course of the season, even hinting he would sue Everton after Leeds were relegated.
However, it is Kinnear’s record at Leeds United that will concern Evertonians most. A former Arsenal marketing executive, Kinnear spent three years at West Ham where he was involved in both side’s stadium moves.
Seen as a commercially astute and having been trusted by two owners at Leeds, Kinnear does split opinion.
He moved to Leeds eight years ago, where he was CEO during probably the worst new club crest launch of all time. Leeds introduced a bizarre new badge featuring a man thumping his chest in 2018 to much derision from rival fans. The badge was awful and the club quickly backtracked, with Kinnear saying: “”As we look at the feedback today I think it’s clear that the consultation process that we embarked on, that we were very confident had delivered a result, wasn’t extensive enough.”
Kinnear, who did hire Marco Bielsa to lead the club to the Premier League with scintillating football before later falling out with the manager over what Bielsa perceived as inteference in the side, was also behind the Jesse March hiring, which was a disastrous appointment that led to the club finishing below Sean Dyche’s Everton and being relegated.
Upon appointing Marsh, Kinnear hit back at Leeds supporters in his programme notes, which are regularly used to voice his inner thoughts, telling them their ambitions for the club were unfounded.
Kinnear’s management of on-pitch matters has been equally baffling. When Leeds signed Jean-Kevin Augustin on loan he played just 48 minutes before injury and attitude problems led to him being sent back to RB Leipzig. When Leeds were promoted they were required to pay £17.7m to acquire Augustin permanently but instead they argued “extenuating circumstances” surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic “nullified the deal”.
FIFA ruled in RB Leipzig’s favour and Leeds had to pay Augustin £24.5m for breach of contract, meaning they paid over £45m for a player who contributed a single half of football in total.
Under Kinnear, Leeds also lost several players to loans after relegation thanks to clauses inserted into contracts that allowed players to leave for no fee. Everton secured Jack Harrison for two years on loan with no up front fees this way, while the likes of Max Wober, Marc Roca, Diego Llorente, Brenden Aaronson and Rasmus Kristensen were all allowed to move without a fee.
A deeply divisive figure with Leeds fans, Kinnear has been described as a ‘politician’ who can never accept blame by some.
MOT, a prominent Leeds site, says: “Putting it bluntly, most fans are calling Kinnear a “politician” who’s great at avoiding taking sides and basically saying whatever it takes to keep his job. Most are baffled by Kinnear’s insistence that decisions about managers, players, and contracts were all down to the club’s Director of Football, Victor Orta, leaving them wondering what Kinnear’s CEO role really entails.
“Phrases like “in hindsight” and “retrospectively” have also irked many fans. They felt it was a bit too much, and they were left wondering why Kinnear, as the CEO, wasn’t more involved in making sure these mistakes didn’t happen in the first place.”
Kinnear does have his supporters. Known to be savvy commercial – he brokered the unpopular Red Bull advertising on Leeds’ shirts this year – he is a competent marketer.
One fan took to Reddit to say: “He’s good at his job, but it’s a job that football fans are never really going to appreciate. But where most CEOs would probably just fade into the background, Angus is also just a bit of a knob, so I get why lots of fans don’t like him.”
He has also received praise for regular appearances on fan media where he has addressed issues such as the club’s PSR situation and transfer plans.
Everton have not confirmed talks but it appears he is on the radar of the Friedkin Group as they seek a replacement for interim CEO Colin Chong.