If you had any idea you'd come on Not606 and have a look at what Leeds fans are saying...not all the crap stuff but the common theme amongst most posts. We are badly in need of a defence...and strikers as well while you're about it. The problem as I see it right now is that you are simply looking after your job rather than trying your heart out to take this great club to the Prem. It was a real eye-opener listening to the build up interviews with yourself and Nigel Adkins. He said his players were keyed up, ready to go, wanting a win at home to kick-start their season...you said we had players like Becchio missing but the team was in good spirits although you expected a really tough game as Southampton are a big club with big ambitions. What the ****? What does "good spirits" mean you idiot? The thing that ****ed me off the most was your pathetic response when asked about the season's ambitions....or rather lack of. I almost cried when you said you felt we had over-achieved last season!!! How the **** can you say something like that...even if you believe it's true? What message does that send to your players you twat? Over-achieved? How can finishing seventh in the Championship be over-achieving for a club like Leeds United? Now maybe if you were manager at Leyton Orient I could understand, but Leeds? Piss off!! We were in the automatic promotion places at one point, and seemed dead certs for the play-offs for most of the season until we fell away badly towards the end and allowed Reading to make up more than 15 points on us and leave us heartbroken. It is becoming clear to me that you are just plain scared to actually show any ambition as it means that if you don't achieve your goals the fans will have your head. Well guess what, we're going to have it anyway if you don't buck up. Understand this Mr Grayson, you are manager of Leeds United, and our expectation is that this is the season you take us up. If you can't, then get out of the way and let someone else with a bit more bottle have a go. The performance at Saints today was gutless, our defence was a joke and we made them look a lot better than they actually are. I couldn't believe how we simply didn't play. Maybe it had something to do with the players knowing that seventh place is probably a good outcome again this season. Then there's your absolute lack of strengthening the squad. This can only be put down to the fact that you are afraid to ask Ken Bates for cash as you know that if you spend and don't get promotion he will boot you out of Elland Road in a flash. Better to not spend and try your best with an average squad...at least the chairman is happy because our millions remain safely tucked away under his mattress. Come on Simon, get a grip!! Letting Schmeichel go may have been "good for the club" as it meant you didn't have to offer him a new deal at higher wages, but damn, he would have saved that first goal today....that all important first goal. Our new 'keeper got a good hand to it but still couldn't turn it round the post. Is that possibly because he's past his best? I ****ing hope not!! I can't believe that you have got me so angry that I feel compelled to write to you in this manner. I love Leeds United, and I'm not for bashing people at our club, but come on man, show some ****ing fight!!! Your interviews lack any spark, any intelligence, it's just cliche after cliche....same **** different day. Now you are being found out as so many people predicted...the injuries to Becchio and Somma have made a mockery of your lack of signings, the no show by your defence today has highlighted your inability to accept that you need to make changes. And then there's the talented Nunez who probably just needs a run of games similar to Maxie-boy but you still let the lad gather ****ing splinters in his arse while we struggle to create!! Surely Howson alongside Brown would have been a more solid midfield to start with, Nunez on the left and Gradel up front with McCormack to at least keep them honest and dropping a bit deeper to cope with Max's pace? Go for a win man!! This division does not forgive draws....or losses. You still remain tactically naive, too ****ing conservative. You are playing with our club's future to keep yourself in a job. Stop sucking up to the chairman and go for it. We are Leeds after all, and we expect so much more!!! Make or break time, Simon, any more bad performances like the opener and you will soon find the Elland Road faithful calling for your blood....and you should know there's only one winner there!!
I was going to post almost the same. Great article Billy. Bottom line is were not as good as last season thanks to lack of investment and signing has beens. Just hope bates and graysons antics don't come back to haunt us. Top half of table might be a bit optimistic yet
Good article, I could not believe Grayson pre match interview. As a Saints fan I would like to thank him. How a Leeds Utd manager can appear to hint at Southampton as bigger club with bigger ambitions is plain stupid... Thank god uncle Ken is no where near my club.
Good article mate. Though we were piss poor yesterday. I honestly think this stupid 4-5-1 formation continues to hinder our chances. We fell out of the playoffs because of this **** tactic. So the last 2 games when we changed to 4-4-2 we came away with 6 points. Ross can't play on his own and paynter may swell **** off... Interesting how we react against boro on sat. But I'll be singing anti bates songs along with the rest of the fans. It's time he sold us!
another vote for billy.. good article. It's clear that Grayson spends half his time quoting bate's party line about selling for footballing reasons etc, and the rest of it playing down expectations, so he doesn't fall short of them. I guess its difficult for him though, he's at the club he wants to be at, but his chairman won't let him spend. He could do a billy davies and say we have no money... that will show the world we have no ambition and make it even harder to get anyone here... it will also cost him his job. Ok the world has worked it out that we have no ambition, but admitting it is another thing. He's between a rock and a hard place to be honest, but he needs a more positive outlook because the players can't have it if he doesn't
You did over achieve last season and you are a poor side, judging by yesterdays performance!! Hopefully now some of you dreamers will realise that you don't have a prayer of making the top 6!! CLIVETIME has been proved right by his comments about the state of your club and the clowns that are running it!!
Fair article. Not sure why we continue to play 451. Your starter for 10 would be to play Paynter AND McCormack up front. A better choice would be Paynter or McCormack & Nunez. This would allow SG to continue with Howson & either Brown or Clayton in CM. Snoddy was woeful yesterday. Is he injured? Sam has to start. Let's hope SG shakes things up quickly. If he doesn't, LIW's idea of SG having 10 games may not be so far fetched.
Yeah but we had a decent hardworking striker in Beccio... McCormack is not that kind of player and Paynter is just sh1t... So 4-5-1 will not work with this squad at present... SG wont shake it up he's useless
Simon 451 got us into a good position, but we didn't have two reasonable DMs. We also had a leaky defence. We now have Clayton & Brown. Kisnorbo is also back. We shouldn't need to play 451 anymore.
On paper we have a better squad by some way. I personally think there's unsettlement in the training camp. Gradel's not been offered a new contract presumably due to wage demands and Bates will have taken his bat home instead of trying to negotiate. Snodgrass not been offered a new contract. Very little in way of transfer activity and what we've brought in is questionable (although I still think an improvement - just how much of one). Grayson's under a lot of pressure and will have his hands tied by Bates and the stress levels will be showing in training. He's already showed hints in interviews.
I have a feeling with the apparent lack of ambition being shown by the chairman come January or before Snodgrass, Gradel and Howson will all be asking to leave.
Good article. But I think a lot of the people here are mistake about the way we are lining up. We are not playing a 4-5-1. A midfield 5 includes 3 centremids, but we have Howson right up with the striker. It's a 4-2-3-1, which is a lot less stable. Everytime we get the ball, Snodgrass, Howson, Gradel and Clayton all flew forward, leaving just 34 year old Brown there. All 3 of Southampton's goals were counter attacks, they just exploited our thin midfield. If we are going to play this formation, we need 2 defensive mids who will sit at all times. That way, Howson, Snoddy and Gradel are free to attack. I think a proper 4-5-1 would work well. If Howson drops back a little bit into a centre 3 alongside Clayton and Brown, we'd keep possession more and wouldn't get counter attacked. If you remember the 4-4-2 that did so well in League One, we always had one less attacking player on the wing. We had Snoddy on the right and Johnson on the left, which meant it was less attacking. I wouldn't like to see a 4-4-2 with Snoddy, Gradel and Howson. -----------------Brown----- ----------Howson---Clayton Snoddy---------------------Gradel -------------McCormack------------- That's how we should have lined up. As appose to Howson basically as a striker.
Reading (or listening) between the lines, I think Grayson is dropping big hints about the state of what he is allowed to do. By saying that Soton have lots of ambition I believe that he is saying that Bates doesn't have any ambition for the club or he isn't putting up the cash to make any ambition realistically achievable. We could get into a situation where SG resigns. Right now he sounds quite rightly very frustrated.
What's with all the unrest at Elland Road? Of course you overachieved last season. The name "Leeds United" isn't going to get you ****ing promoted, so stop expecting it to. When you were in the 3rd Division your fans were actually very humble about it, but it seems that 2nd tier football has brought with it the same old arrogance and pigheadedness.
