Danny Mills will see out his season-long loan at Middlesbrough rather than return to Leeds United, even though he is wanted back at Elland Road. Leeds are powerless to break the loan deal because when Peter Reid instigated it the Elland Road board did not request a get-out clause as one of the stipulations.
Even though Leeds' caretaker-manager Eddie Gray is desperate for Mills to help in their relegation fight it could only happen in the improbable circumstances of Middlesbrough deciding they no longer want him.
"The sacking of Peter Reid has not changed the situation as far as Danny is concerned," Neil Featherby, the player's agent, said. "The agreement is that he stays at Middlesbrough until the end of the season and if they want to keep him there is nothing Leeds can do."
The Leeds directors were heavily criticised by the League Managers' Association yesterday, with its chief executive John Barnwell accusing them of making Reid work "under incredibly bad circumstances". He will be involved in Reid's attempts to win a settlement of around £800,000 from a club looking for their fourth manager in 17 months.
"Peter was brought in to salvage what was left of the wreckage, knowing that there was very little money there, but what he found was far worse than he had been told," Barnwell said. "As they say, it was not like the brochure.
"We've got Leeds having paid very big compensation to two managers already (Terry Venables and David O'Leary), and they're going to have to settle with Peter at some stage too. That's money that has just been thrown away, and they're worse off for it. The appointment procedure is flawed and you have to ask who is making the appointments, and you still see the same people there."
Such an assessment might be enough to put off most prospective managers but Paul Hart, the clear favourite to succeed Reid, remains willing to walk out of Nottingham Forest, despite launching a charm offensive yesterday aimed at placating the first division club's supporters.
Aware that Leeds have made it clear it will be a "lengthy process", with Gray keeping the position for longer than had been initially anticipated, Hart released a statement saying he had "never been more committed" to Forest.
"Speculation is none of my doing and I honestly don't feel the need to be forever reacting to situations beyond my control," he said. "It may be seen by some people as flattering to be linked with other clubs but it can also have a nuisance element to it."
The idea is clearly to win back an increasingly hostile Nottingham public. However, it is well known throughout the game that Hart has fallen out with his chairman Nigel Doughty and was interviewed for the West Ham job before Alan Pardew's appointment. Privately, he has been telling people close to him quite the opposite.
