Leeds United boss Paul Heckingbottom: 'Sack speculation surprised everyone'

Leeds United boss Paul Heckingbottom has rubbished rumours that he is set to leave the club.

The Whites sit 14th in the Championship table, having won just once in their last eight league games.

Heckingbottom's side are only three points nearer to the playoffs than they are to relegation, but the former Barnsley coach is adamant that his job is not in jeopardy.

"Everything has carried on as normal," Heckingbottom said in a press conference.

"In terms of meetings, planning, and discussions for next season, nothing has changed. The speculation yesterday surprised everyone at the club, not just me. As far as we're concerned, it's business as usual. At the minute we're just putting halves of football together. That's a problem. We've seen big moments in games become catalysts for us losing games, which is another problem.

"We need to put poor decisions by officials or injuries we might sustain to the back of our minds. We can't let those kinds of situations affect us. We're not where we want to be, so things have to change. We have to do a lot of good work to improve the squad. We want it slimmer, less in numbers and higher in quality."

Leeds travel to face Aston Villa on Friday as the hosts look to extend their gap from fifth-placed Derby County.