After 16 long years today sees Leeds Utd back in the big time with a brilliant little game against the scousers. I will leave any more mention of this event to the match-day thread that's going to get battered, and post this thread for somewhere to hide away and calm the heart. Quite a bit has happened this week that didn't get much of an airing: Adrian Durham on Talkshyte said that leeds have bought crap and will be relegated. Radz gave a very astute and sensible interview to Talkshyte with Alan Brazil, where he said Leeds have a 3 year plan for the prem and year 1 is to survive. year 2 is to build and improve the squad and improve on year 1 by getting mid-table. Year 3 is to try and challenge at the sharp end for a top 6 place. Sensible discussion about the differences in budget for those at the top. Obvious by now that we are going to sign a new winger/No10 preferably a top player who can play both roles. Its also the fact that if the player can only play one of those roles we will be paying less than £20m but for the right man we break transfer record again. Players continually mentioned are: Rodrigo De Paul Harry Wilson Florentino Refinah Milot Rashica Leon Baily Benrhama What is happening with Kiko because it looks like he is staying. Either he wants to prove a point or he wants to cling on to his wages
This Radz interview with the Financial Times also gives a flavour of what we are willing to do in the transfer market. Quality over quantity everytime
Also wishing Jamal Blackman a successful season with Rotherham Utd. Jamal as you know was really fancied by Bielsa and called him the best young English keeper around. He told Blackman to shed pounds before he would play him in the first team so he lost 12kilos. He then had an awful injury playing for the 23s in a midweek game with Bielsa watching as he was going to start for the first team at the weekend. Bielsa went to see him and hugged him and explained what the injury was. Blackman will never forget his time at Leeds and his time with Bielsa.
Do you think there is anything in the Florentino Luis Benfica link? HITC seem to think he is worth £41.5, really!! they were saying half of that last week.
As far as Kiko is concerned I'm waiting to see what selection Bielsa makes today. Meslier starting and Kiko on the Bench or perhaps one of the other goalkeepers on the bench?
the thing with Florentino is that he was a baby when he broke through, still is really. Benfica then added a massive buy out clause to his contract because Inter Milan were sniffing. That deal broke down and after that so did Florentinos performances so he spent a lot of time on the bench. Hence Benfica willing to let him leave at a reduced fee. Also a new top manager at Benfica this season who wants to bring in a lot if players and needs cash. Florentino is a faster and more skilful version of Ngolo Kante, but he can also play wing and attack midfield. If Bielsa is serious I think its because he wants to create Florentino into something other than DM
A story that makes a bit of sense is that after todays game the final deal will be completed between Leeds and Liverpool for Harry Wilson. The fee will be £15m not the £20m Liverpool wanted. Liverpool desperate for some cash to finalise deals for Alcantara etc. Not sure about this but clearly Bielsa admires Wilson and Liverpool would only want to get rid once Leeds have played Liverpool?
I’d like our next couple of signings to have some Premier League experience, the problem with that is it comes at cost. I like Rads three year plan, the danger is we get someone like Rodrigo or De Paul and they become homesick after 12 months or they stand head and shoulders above anyone else and one of the top 3 or even a Barca or Madrid come sniffing. The u23s is obviously where Rads and Orta see the challenge coming from in three years time. Edmondson, good to hear he has recovered, sounds promising that he heals quickly and we need more like him and less of the Forshaws
The thing about being a pro footballer is that you know you are going to have to move. Moving house all through your career and we all know players who cannot settle at some clubs and become homesick and thats for English players. I only see top players moving to a new club once they have all the data and know what to expect in the dressing room. Bielsa looks for players not just on skills, but on being able to learn, adapt and integrate. He wants team players only and so anyone he goes for should be ok. Yes there is a danger of other clubs wanting these players but that will always be the way and I hope all our players are wanted by Real Madrid as it shows the club progressing. If the kids in the academy can grow into superstar material we will save a fortune in transfers. We now have a dozen top end kids who can make the big time
One reason I feel we will make more signings this window, is that I dont think we will go again in the January window. We know that anyone who comes into the club in January may not be fit enough or able to do Bielsaball until March. So a waste of time and why we should do our business now knowing we will have injuries and suspensions plus players losing form. i just hope all of our players are looking forward to this and not going to freeze like rabbits in headlights.
I think the failure to go up a couple of seasons ago will stand this team in good stead. They were emotional wrecks in Bielsa's first season. It looked to me that last season was more business like by the team, there were plenty of games where I thought that we would have lost the year before. In other words, past failures have made this team mentally stronger.
Read the article in the FT and there was one extremely worrying snippet which seems to have been totally ignored. Apparently we're looking into using a factoring company to access future PL revenues. In other words back to the bad old days of borrowing against future income...spend it now and then be totally f***ed if we go down and that future income subsequently plummets. If Radz does go down that route it's an extremely risky strategy, it seems he may think it's a risk worth taking as he seeks to grow the club into a billion pound asset over the next 3 years. Let's not forget Mr Radrizani sold his company MP & Silva in 2016 for a billion dollars to chinese investors and it went in liquidation in 2018.
Good spot Jammy, is he doing this in the short term until he feels safe in the Prem? As you say factoring is good on paper but is still an expensive option. It could be said that the new owners of Maclaren Racing are also trying to capitalise on their name by selling that iconic Woking building and then leasing it back. It gets them over £200m cash but then paying over the odds in rent for about 100 years.
well done Jamal Blackman a clean sheet and a win for Rotherham against Wycombe Poor old Brentford getting beaten by Karankas Birmingham
He has a number of potential investors - this might suggest he simply doesn’t want to share the pie. how much we invest in jan will depend on how the season is going. If you’re in danger of relegation then the risk reward balance is obvious and the maths gets simpler
His career hasn’t exactly been upwardly mobile since he left us - but was unlucky at Leeds, meant to be a nice lad, wish him well.
I actually liked Brentford until the lockdown. After lockdown, the press turned them in to the next Barcelona they way they talked them up. Everyone was saying they were the best team in the Championship even though they were third. Ended up being pleased that they missed out on promotion.
2 of the best creative midfielders didnt play in the Championship today. Emiliano Buendia wasn't even on the bench for relegated Norwich and Said Benrhama didn't turn out for Brentford. .???
