Good Morning. It's Monday 12th August, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road Wasteful Leeds squander opportunities for opening win Leeds squandered multiple opportunities to start their 24/25 campaign in style, settling for a draw against newly promoted Portsmouth at the weekend. Leeds bullied the Championship new boys in the opening minutes, rocking the woodwork three times in quick succession, before Ogilvie dragged Dan James down in the box on the 10-minute mark. When Struijk duly obliged from 12 yards out, few would have expected the game to end in stalemate, but as we have learnt in recent times, if you don't take your chances, you're gonna get punished. Whether Leeds took their foot off the gas, or Portsmouth worked their way back into the game is up for debate, but the Whites found themselves 2-1 down at the break. Sorensen beat Meslier at his near post (23mins), followed just before the interval with a Lang piledriver from the edge of the box. Gnonto restored order shortly after the break, and it stayed that way until injury time, when Jayden Bogle grabbed Saydee around the neck from within the penalty area. The man in black had little choice but to point to the spot, and once again Meslier managed to dive out of the way of the ball, handing Lane his brace. Leeds response was instantaneous. Arronson showed poise and skill to work an opportunity before wrong-footing the keeper, but then fluffed his lines two minutes later dragging his effort agonisingly wide with the last kick of the game. please log in to view this image More Casio than Rolex The cogs may be turning, but we're certainly not seeing the well-oiled machine necessary to take the Championship by storm. Farke's side worked 22 openings at the weekend, scoring just three. Their wastefulness in the final third, whether it be bad decision-making (shooting at an angle where the player hasn't got a hope in hell of scoring at) or lack of poise (or skill) in front of goal, continues to haunt the Whites. You look at the bench. There is not a single player that wouldn't make the starting line-up for the majority of Championship sides - so where is it going wrong? Leeds may have a £60m bench, but why haven't they got a first team player capable of taking a decent free-kick or corner? The Whites had twelve corners (to Portsmouth's zero) and only looked like scoring once. Rothwell was bought to ER as a squad player, but is probably the best at set-pieces. If this is the case, we surely need to bring in an upgrade - someone capable of delivering good balls en masse. Gruev was unlucky not to register against Portsmouth; a few inches lower, and we could have been looking at an early contender for goal of the month; but he doesn't do it consistently. please log in to view this image Rak-Sakyi bid puts Rowe deal on ice Leeds have launched an official bid of £15m for Crystal Palace starlet Jesurun Rak-Sakyi according to respected journalist Alan Nixon. The 21yo was expected to have signed for the Blades last week on a season-long loan, only for the deal to have stalled at the last hurdle. Southampton tried their luck with a £7m bid earlier this Summer, only for the Eagles to insist that they would only consider a loan move. Money talks, and if Leeds throw enough money their way, perhaps it will make a difference? Where does this leave the Jonathan Rowe deal? The Norwich winger refused to play at the weekend, in a desperate bid to fly the coup; but is his destination Elland Road or the French Riviera? Marseilles too, are strongly linked with the England U21 star, and are the only side to have registered a formal offer thus far! please log in to view this image
Cannot see Leeds paying £15m for any player as that just makes the PSR situation even worse. We have the most highly valued squad in the league as it is, so any players coming in will be shrewd buys or loans. Feel there are still a couple to leave too yet. What is the point of Gelhardt for example who doesn’t fit FarkeBall. Not a very good start to the season but early days. At least we were trying to get the ball into the box rather than fk around going nowhere
I'm not panicking after Saturday. We created enough chances to win three games comfortably. On another day we win that one by 5 or 6. Keep that up and we will go up. The worry is, and has been for some time, that we need more chances to score than anyone else in the league and that when we do concede shots at goal that our keeper seems to refuse to save them. I'm hoping that when Joseph gets off the mark that he settles down and becomes more comfortable with a big crowd because he is a hell of a finisher. He just seemed to have panicked a bit in front of the kop. As for the goalkeeper, well, I've said it for a few seasons now. It's not gonna change. We just have to do the same as last season and restrict teams from shooting at goal. In short, if we play like that for the whole of the season, we will be in and amongst the 90 point mark again. Thought we played well enough but without the desirable result. Puts a bit of pressure on the next couple of league games for sure.
Morning all. Still pissed off with the weekends result and can’t get the last second miss out of my head. Also fed up with the fact that we need so many chances to score when so often it only takes the opposition one shot on target to score against us. As I said to the lot in the con club, only another 45 games of disappointment before I can relax again at the end of the season.
Good morning everyone I have!!! as it felt like a loss, what erks me is the fact nothing seems to have changed from last season infact the match was a seamless continuation of it. As for Meslier (well you all know what I think) we need to score at least two to win a match,all owing for the expected blunder at some point in the game, Trouble is Darlow not much better, if we are going to get promoted we need a reliable keeper first and foremost to any other position, after all a solid foundation makes for a strong building
I bet you a months avatar that we score 5 or 6 goals against someone in one match this season. You game?
Was just about to say the same, when i hear the phrase we created enough chances to win two or three games or one by five or six, we simply don't do that as were unable to convert those chances. Just to add Portsmouth (who will struggle to survive this season) were a poor side who apparently i heard before the game had a job to field a first rate starting eleven. OK the one plus i take from this game is for some reason we play and do a lot better against the better sides, than we do against the poorer ones
What a disappointment. And bloody embarrassing for me, watching the game with a couple of mates and my daughter's boyfriend (a Man Utd fan) I confidently predicted a big win for Leeds after Pompey's dreadful pre-season and the fact their top scorer was out. With Leeds in full flow in pre-season for once I thought the floodgates would open after hitting the woodwork three times in 6 minutes and then finally taking the lead. But then Leeds turned into.....well, Leeds. Same old story, dominating in possession, carving out plenty of chances and yet eventually struggling to even get a point. Still, hopefully we'll get a couple more signings over the line and settle into a groove. Wish the transfer window would end before the season starts, it's unfair on EFL clubs waiting around for the scraps from the prem teams. Squads should be finalised before the the first game.
Nobody willing to take the bet that we will get 5 or 6 goals in a match this season? Set of ****houses moaning and groaning and whingeing and whining but nobody willing to put a months avatar on the line. You're all full of ****! I'll take multiple bets. All of you. Need a bit of courage? We didn't hit 5 once last season. please log in to view this image
Wait till transfer window is closed and I'll let you know if I'm in. If we don't add anything substantial to squad Ill take you up
Word on the street is that Everton are yet again in breach of PSR and with the prem season starting at the weekend why have Leicester still not had a points deduction? They were going to be deducted points for cheating when last in the prem and broke the rules again last season in the EFL so another pounts deduction coming if they get relegated. What a joke bunch of people running football.
They tried that two or three years ago but the problem was that the European clubs windows were still open so players could get poached and couldn’t be replaced so reverted back to be in line with everyone else.
I’ve taken it up but just for clarification. Is it we will score 5 or 6 or that we will beat someone by 5 or 6 i.e. if we win 5-4 does that not count for the bet?
Morning all Let's hope the weekend was a wake up call and we get our transfer activity done and dusted this week We played well, we missed some great chances but at least we created them
Problem is we concede a lot, great watch for the neutral, but in all honesty we need a lot better than Meslier. For a handfull of games last season we had a defence tighter than a Scotsman's wallet, Just a coincidence Klaeson was keeping goal? he was coming on leaps and bounds in every game, but as i have said multiple times must have been a problem in training or attitude maybe? but still think it was a mistake not keeping him, as Meslier/Darlow made him look like Gordon Banks.
We are not linked with any keepers and it looks like we are stuck with Meslier The worry is he doesn't handle pressure and playing at home and knowing the fans think you are **** is only going to make matters worse, I just hope we defend better in future games. Meslier has pulled off some good saves in his time, he isn't a Rachbuka but I agree, we need better, it just isn't happening this season
Ryan Lowe has walked out of Preston after just one game. Yes they were beaten 2-0 by the blunts but to Jack it in can only mean Rooney is on the verge of getting sacked at Plymouth and Lowe was probably their best coach until he took the Preston job.
