Leeds United are in the midst of an intense promotion battle as they look to win a place in the Premier League for the first time in 15 years. 

They currently sit in second place, only behind Norwich City on goal difference, and have been sat in those automatic places for quite a while now.

It was a former manager that grabbed the attention on Tuesday, however, as the Sun reported that Paul Heckingbottom was closed to being named as Hibernian's new manager.

He was sacked as manager of the Whites at the end of the 2017/18 season after guiding the club to a disappointing mid-table finish and is yet to return to management.

Heckingbottom was brought to Leeds as a replacement for Thomas Christiansen from local rivals Barnsley in February 2018 after impressing at Oakwell but failed to revive their impressive start to the season, finishing with a win percentage of just 25%.

Many members of the Elland Road faithful found the appointment hilarious, sarcastically wishing Hibs fans all the best.

But how SHOULD they be feeling?

Frankly, it is a shame to see grudges like this held in football.

Leeds are in a brilliant position right now and their fans have absolutely no reason to continue to mock Heckingbottom. Yes, he made mistakes at Elland Road and is not thought of highly at all, but it seems that many fans have forgotten that he is still only 41. Incredibly young in management terms.

There is a real chance that the Leeds job was simply too much too soon for him. After all, he clearly showed during his time with Barnsley to have some managerial talent.

Wishing him well may be too much to ask, but it is surely time that the fans moved on and forgave Heckingbottom for what he did, or didn't, do during his very brief time at the club.