Cagliari vs. JuventusMassimo Cellino was the latest target for a cold call from one Leeds United fan hosting an internet radio station called White Leeds Radio last night.

Following on from a phonecall with Ken Bates he broadcast live on air Saturday night, a user of the Leeds United messageboard WACCOE managed to get hold of Massimo Cellino’s phone number, recording a 22 minute conversation with the Italian in which the prospective Leeds United owner labelled David Haigh “the devil” and accused him of attempted blackmail, described the current Leeds United side as the worst football team he’s ever seen and criticised Brian McDermott for spending too much time moaning and not enough time coaching.

On David Haigh, Cellino said “he’s a son of a b***h, dangerous, a f***ing devil” adding claims that he’s working in cahoots with Ken Bates, who still maintains some control over Leeds United Football Club. 

Cellino didn’t seem impressed by Brian McDermott’s performance either, pointing out that Leeds won “five goals to one” after he’d “had the balls to” fire him before describing the team’s performances since then as the worst football he’s ever seen.

Other revelations included Noel Hunt’s £25,000 per week salary (edit: now believed to be an error, with Cellino confusing Hunt with another player, possibly Jimmy Kebe), while Luke Murphy was said to earn £22,000, figures Cellino explained contributed heavily to an £18m wage bill he considered ludicrous, insisting he could form a team of better players for £10m and that the current squad didn’t deserve half of that figure between them.

Cellino also said that Ross McCormack attempted to leave for Cardiff City during the chaos on transfer deadline day, but was told by the Italian he’s going nowhere and to concentrate on training.

Money was another topic touched upon by Cellino who shed some light on the season ticket renewal situation. For those who aren’t aware of the process, Leeds United generally send out early renewal forms before this date but haven’t done so this season. Cellino revealed this was a decision he made, explaining that fans shouldn’t be expected to pay for tickets so far in advance when they have no idea what the situation at the club will be next year, adding that they’ll go on sale after the season is finished if his takeover is cleared by an appeals hearing today.

Cellino said this caused some dispute between himself and current owners GFH Capital who told him they needed the money to pay the players’ wages, but when the Italian said he’d pay the wages instead, the current owners accepted his terms.

The only people Cellino had anything positive to say about was Leeds United’s fans who he considers to be the only asset the club has. Accepting that he can’t buy their love and must prove himself, this is a quote that will probably go down in Elland Road folklore;

“Fans are not for sale, they have feeling and you don’t buy feeling. You can buy a b***h for one night, but you don’t buy the love my friend.”

Despite the manner in which this “interview” was obtained, it’s probably helped Cellino’s cause – at least in the eyes of fans, with whom he shares a lot of the same frustrations. Promising the fans “Premier League football by 2016” won’t hurt his cause either.

Whether the recording will have other implications is impossible to say. David Haigh won’t be happy to hear it, nor will the Leeds United manager and a few of his players.

Cellino’s appeal hearing is scheduled for this afternoon and will be decided on by an independent QC. The Italian says he’s confident The FL’s decision will be overturned, leaving him in the unfortunate situation of having to clear up the mess left behind by past owners.

The full recording is available to listen to below. Be warned, it contains a lot of foul language and should definitely be considered NSFW. For those of you questioning the legitimacy of the recording, I think the content speaks for itself, but I’ve also been in touch with the person who acquired Cellino’s number and have seen the evidence of how he obtained it, leaving no doubt in my mind this is legit.