Thomas Christiansen has blamed his departure from Leeds on the suspension picked up by Samu Saiz and the heightened expectations from their good start to the season.

The Denmark-born former Spain international was a relative unknown when he was appointed to the role in the summer but quickly lifted Leeds to the top of the Championship.

He departed in early February after a terrible run of form that saw Leeds fail to win from Boxing Day, dropping to 10th in the league, and exit the FA Cup at the hands of League Two Newport County.

Thomas Christiansen has given his first interview since exiting Leeds in early February

The Danish manager suggested the red card picked up by Samu Saiz for spitting was an issue

Christiansen has subsequently been replaced by Paul Heckingbottom, who takes the club to Derby on Wednesday night. It is the first game playmaker Saiz — who has scored five goals in his first Championship campaign — will be available for since his ban for spitting was lifted.

And Christiansen believes his unavailability — and a run of other injuries and bans — was key to his exit. Speaking to Danish outlet BT, he said: 'Our best player, Spaniard Samu Saiz, got a red card for spitting in the face of an opponent as we went out of the FA Cup against Newport.

'He got six matches out, and some of the others also got long suspensions.

'Saiz was our most important player in the offensive part of the game and we couldn’t afford to buy a new one. Suspensions and injuries piled up. The squad just wasn’t big enough for us to replace those players.'

Midfielder Saiz, who has been a key player for Leeds, was suspended for the next six matches

Leeds's blistering start to the season saw them top the table after the game against Birmingham on September 12.

Form tailed off significantly and they spent the winter months floating around the play-off positions before another slump and Christiansen's subsequent sacking.

The former head coach believes that early run made his job more difficult: 'It’s a big club with dreams of moving back to the Premier League, where they believe they belong.

'Every single season, both the club and its fans believe that now they’re ready.

'The fans said the team had not played so well for over a decade. With our good start, expectations grew a little more.'