PHIL Parkinson should not fear any interference from above from a Gianni Paladini era at Valley Parade.

Not all Italian owners are the same.

Many City fans see the volatile situation unfolding under the Massimo Cellino regime at Leeds and worry about a similar change at the top rocking the steady progress being made on this side of Pudsey.

Should Parkinson, the manager who has revived the club from the recent doldrums, be bracing himself for fighting the same in-house battles that have seen Cellino just unveil his fifth hot-seat appointment in little over a year?

Not at all, according to someone who knows exactly how Paladini operates.

Neil Warnock enjoyed a successful relationship with him at QPR – so much so that the pair remain firm friends.

Warnock describes Paladini as the “best chairman I’ve ever worked with” and insists Parkinson will have no issues over first-team control should the takeover go through.

Speaking to the Telegraph & Argus, the former Leeds, Sheffield United and Crystal Palace manager described how well he worked under Paladini.

“Gianni was brilliant for me,” said Warnock. “We had the most amazing time.

“He isn’t one who wants to control everything. He isn’t like that.

“He wants the club to take off and takes an interest in everything. But the manager will always have the last say.

“Phil’s not to worry about anything like that. Gianni just wants people who are genuine and give him 100 per cent.

“As long as they don’t lie to him, he listens to what’s needed and will help them all he can.

“Yes, he gets passionate and gets carried away. There’s never a dull moment with Gianni around.

“But that’s because he cares. We had a wonderful period working together.

“He knows his football but he also just let me get on with it.”

It is understood that Paladini has another week to complete the deal after a month of finalising due diligence. The club agreed to extend his exclusivity period and hold off other interested parties attracted since his approach.

Warnock, rumoured for a director of football role at the club if Paladini takes charge, can see a link between City and the QPR he led to promotion to the top flight four years ago.

“I think Bradford are very similar to QPR, if anything they have a bigger catchment area.

“I’ve said to Gianni what a good club this is. Bradford are potentially massive really.

“Stuart McCall always used to tell me all about the club and how they were getting 10,000-12,000 crowds without a problem – they’ll get a lot more if they can find that success.

“I can see that happening. For me, Bradford are a top half Championship club.

“I think it’s got Gianni excited. He knows me, I’m a Yorkshireman and they’re a Yorkshire club so that’s not a problem.

“He will like the Yorkshire people because they tell you it straight. You get what you see.

“The supporters will take him on board. He was great with me and great with the club.

“I talk to the fans at QPR and they all think the same about him.

“He took them over when they were penniless. It wasn’t easy but we were rewarded in the end.”

Warnock believes that Parkinson could also lean on Paladini’s past experience as an agent – and a contact book that taps into Europe.

“Gianni knows his players and I didn’t mind him giving his opinion. It was interesting, especially nowadays when you’ve got to look at foreign players.

“He has got a lot of contacts, not only in Italy but elsewhere with him being an agent. It does come in handy with a lot of things.

“He wants to know what you need as a manager but doesn’t force things on you. I would come up with the names and the targets and he helped to get the ones I wanted.

“There were times when I thought somebody might be all right, then Gianni would speak to people he knew and it turned out the player wasn’t that good.

“I’d have the say as the manager but it was good for me that he could make a few calls to his contacts. We didn’t make too many wrong decisions.

“It wasn’t all about putting money in to buy players. I was wheeling and dealing at the same time.

“If I felt there were a couple of players we were interested in, then we would often move one or two out.

“Gianni used to come in early and we’d spend half an hour most mornings just chatting. He wasn’t like a chairman talking to the manager.

“Sometimes we’d have a chat on the Sunday about the game. It’s not relaxed at that level because you are always playing two or three times a week so I enjoyed talking to him like that.”

Sources close to Paladini have said how much he misses football since leaving Loftus Road. He has since tried unsuccessfully to get involved at several clubs, most notably Birmingham.

Warnock added: “Gianni is a lost man without football. He’s not the same bubbly character.

“He wants to get back involved and do well again. I just think Bradford seems a good fit.

“They are what Gianni is looking for and he will be just what they are after if he comes up trumps.

“Birmingham is his first club but in fairness that was a can of worms. Just because he’s not a supporter, that doesn’t mean he won’t get involved for the right reasons.

“He is a football person. Bradford have got an opportunity now to push on and are just looking for one or two good players to supplement the squad.”