Thirty years ago tomorrow, this is what befell Leeds United when Jock Stein aped Brian Clough in heading out of the Elland Road exit door after a stint in charge that hardly allowed either man sufficient time to learn everyone's name.

That was, however, where the similarities ended with Clough's departure being an acrimonious affair involving accusations of player power and a manager completely at odds with his squad.

This stormiest of chapters in United's history was the subject of the excellent novel The Damned Utd by David Peace that will next year be released as a film, meaning it is likely to remain firmly in the spotlight for many years to come.

In contrast, Stein's 45-day reign – one day more than Clough managed before being sacked – has been largely forgotten outside Leeds.

A big friend of Don Revie and reputedly unhappy at being moved upstairs at Parkhead, Stein agreed a three-year deal and took charge one game into the 1978-79 season. It seemed a good move for all concerned.

Stein had led Celtic to 10 League titles, eight Scottish Cups, six League Cups and a European Cup triumph against Inter Milan in 1967.

Leeds, meanwhile, had finished the previous season in ninth place – one berth higher than in 1976-77 – but with memories of the Revie era still fresh in the mind, supporters and board members demanded more.

It seemed the appointment of Stein would give them that, but, crucially, the three-year contract he had agreed on August 21 remained unsigned. This meant that when the Scottish FA came calling following Ally McLeod's sacking, and with wife Mary believed to be unhappy at the prospect of moving south, he was able to quit Elland Road and take charge of the national team.

Like Clough, Stein's departure can only be considered a missed opportunity with fans from that era continually left to wonder just what would have been achieved if one of the game's managerial greats could have been persuaded to stay at Elland Road rather than return to Scotland.

Leeds legend Eddie Gray, a boyhood Celtic fan, certainly believes it was a missed opportunity, as illustrated in his 2001 autobiography Marching On Together.

He wrote: "I do not think anyone connected with Leeds could believe their luck when Jock Stein agreed to step into the breach after Jimmy Armfield had been sacked. His presence was the biggest fillip the club could have.

"But in terms of Leeds, our situation when he left was not a great deal better than it had been at the time of Clough's departure."

Unlike after Clough's departure, however, when Armfield took over and led the club to a European Cup final, the Leeds of 1978 was not in the best of shapes.

Four years later, and in the same year Stein led Scotland to the World Cup finals, the Elland Road club slid out of the top division to make the 'what if?' question even more pertinent.