Ben Mansford must again hit the ground running at Leeds United

Mansford, an ex-sports lawyer and agent at Leeds-based Walker Morris, arrived at Oakwell in June, 2013 – becoming one of the youngest CEOs in the Football League at 33 after leaving his position as a director at global sports marketing and management media group Wasserman Media.

His agency background was utilised to the full in a stint which saw Barnsley relegated from and promoted back to the Championship in remarkable fashion.

In his new post, expect Mansford’s extensive contacts base to be heavily drawn upon again, with Leeds behind the ‘eight-ball’ in terms of recruitment, with plenty on the ‘to-do’ list.

Then, there is handling the other facets that invariably come with the territory at present-day Leeds – namely dealing ad hoc with what former Prime Minster Harold Macmilllan described as “events, dear boy, events”.

It was something Mansford became versed in at Barnsley. That grounding is sure to come in handy at Elland Road.

Mansford may be still young in chief executive terms at 36, but his experiences in effectively running a club on a day-to-day basis have shown he is no greenhorn.

With Barnsley owner Patrick Cryne remaining in the background alongside chairman Maurice Watkins to a lesser degree, Mansford proved an effective ‘frontman’ with fans warming to his personal and engaging manner and constant dialogue.

At separate junctures, Mansford showed his mettle after playing results nosedived. His first job at a professional football club was by no means a cakewalk.

But while Doncaster Rovers and Yeovil, relegated to League One with Barnsley in 2013-14 remain in football’s basement, the Reds have made the return journey under Mansford’s watch.

His first year proved a tough baptism. Despite boldly and perhaps ill-advisedly declaring that ‘Barnsley meant business’ in 2013-14 after their ‘Great Escape’ of 2012-13, reality bit in a fraught campaign that ended in relegation with David Flitcroft sacked and replaced by Danny Wilson.

Off the pitch, Mansford did fulfill his brief of re-engaging the club with stakeholders and supporters, although the task he faced post-relegation in the summer of 2014 dwarfed the mission he encountered a year earlier.

The cost of relegation for the Reds in 20 13-14 was £6m with the club losing half of their turnover.

Mansford’s fire-fighting brief then oversaw a mass overhaul with 21 players leaving and cost-cutting in other areas, too.

It was a brief that would have tested the most experienced operator with Mansford leading the belt-tightening due to the ‘Salary Cap Management Protocol’ restricting League One clubs to spending no more than 60 per cent of turnover on wages.

Critically, room for manoeuvre was made to seal two major deals with Conor Hourihane and Sam Winnall joining in a summer which saw 16 players sign.

The 2014-15 season proved a transitional one. Manager Wilson paid the price in February, 2015 when he was axed and, just eight months on, another change looked close.

Most expected Lee Johnson to be sacked with the club bottom of League One after a club record-equalling eight-match losing streak and humiliating FA Cup exit at Altrincham, but Mansford and Cryne showed admirable foresight.

In-house solutions were sought to instigate a recovery, spectacularly manifested in a second half of 2015-16 which was underpinned by some shrewd additions headlined by Adam Hammill.

Mansford also had to deal with the sudden exit of Johnson in the wake of the Reds’ reaching the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final in February and, once again, the club’s response was a mature one.

The decision to stick with caretaker head coach Paul Heckingbottom after Johnson’s departure – for the sake of continuity – proved sound, with two Wembley wins fully vindicating that move.

While many Reds fans will understandably be disappointed at Mansford’s exit, his overseeing of two key pieces of club business in his final week ensured he did not leave the club in the lurch.

Hammill was convinced sufficiently to sign a new two-year deal despite rival offers, with Heckingbottom also confirmed as full-time head coach.

The ball had also already been set rolling earlier regarding close-season recruitment with Kayden Jackson, Stefan Payne, Andy Yiadom arriving, even before Barnsley’s seasonal commitments had finished.

Mansford’s task now is to hit the ground running on the recruitment front at Leeds.