Good Morning. It's Monday 8th June, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road Phillips - We’re a lot stronger than we were before the break Leeds starlet Kalvin Phillips has been talking to the YEP about life in lock down and reveals he did not believe football would return until 2021. The 24yo revealed that the squad had just completed their second murder ball session. (Klich described “murder-ball” as: “playing 11 v 11 with no stops, constantly running around and sprinting, and you have all the coaches on the pitch basically screaming all the time. Even if the ball goes out, there’s a member of staff waiting with another ball.”) “We had one on Thursday and one on Saturday,” revealed Phillips. “It’s a good guideline for us because we haven’t played football for so long. “We were concerned that if we’re not fit enough or we’re not right, it’s not going to go well for us but I think when we do get to these ‘murderball’ sessions, having worked hard throughout the pandemic, we can see where we’re at and I believe we are ready to start the games now and finish the season.” “We didn’t get a clear answer (on whether the season would restart) until recently but we all knew as players the massive opportunity we’ve got and we couldn’t take anything for granted like we did last year,” he said. “It’s a very different situation to last year and if anything we’re a lot stronger than we were before the break. “There was a time two, three weeks into lockdown where not much had been said and we didn’t really know what was going on. I personally didn’t think we were going to start playing football until next year but I’m just glad we’ve come together as a league and said we can carry it on.” “We know we need to keep fit to keep our standards high,” “The club brought us bikes to our houses before it (the lockdown) all happened, gym equipment as well. We maybe had one or two days off but we always had days in the week where we were always working. “If anything, I’m probably fitter and stronger than I was before the pandemic. “I missed the last couple of games with a sore knee. The first week or so (of lockdown) gave you time to recover. “When you’re training around mannequins and cones you get a little bit bored of it. It’s good to be around some of the lads and working as you were before.” Asked how he learned he was allowed back to Thorp Arch, Phillips explained: “It was literally over WhatsApp. We’d had a few phone calls. The manager is very strange in the way he works, he doesn’t come to you personally he just goes through his staff. They got in touch and said we had a certain group of a few players who would train at this time, we’re not allowed in the building, we’ve got to turn up to training ready to train and then respect all the guidelines.” “It’ll be strange, we know that,” “It’ll be like a training session, I’d say, just against different people. “The fans are a massive boost to us but if the fans aren’t there we know how to motivate ourselves and push ourselves on to do well without them there. “It’s very difficult and very hard but we need to start where we left off and I think the only way to do that is by coming back fitter and stronger.” Did the suspension of the season come at the right time for Leeds? Would they have tired over the last nine games? please log in to view this image Football League strike deal with Sky, but is it thanks to Leeds? The Football League have struck a deal with Sky Sports to pay back less than a quarter of monies owed to the Satellite Sports television giant for broadcast rights violations. The total cost to all 72 clubs was feared to be £42 million but have have negotiated a deal understood to be less than 10m The EFL wrote to its clubs on Friday afternoon to let them know that the rebate will be taken off broadcast fees in the next three seasons and in return for settling to a lower amount Sky have been granted the rights to show an extra 10 live Championship matches this term. Interestingly, Sky will be showing all nine Leeds games live! Are the Whites subsidising the rest of the EFL? please log in to view this image Phillips recalls widespread racism Kalvin Phillips is using experiences of racism his friends and family have endured as part of motivation for using his platform to say 'Black Lives Matter'. "Obviously I'm very moved about what's happened over in America, the protests, the movement that's going on," he said. "I think it's the start of something new. "I think the way it's grown and expanded from one country to another is incredible and everyone - not just us as black people - have come together and they want to fight and bring justice to what has happened in the last few years and the decades before." "I think I'm quite lucky, because not many people know that I'm black," he said, explaining why he believes he hasn't had the same experience as other black people in his life. "If you don't know me and you don't know my family you won't really know that I'm black. "But I've got friends and family, sometimes they can't even walk down the street without being given a dirty look. I've got friends who can't even sit out in their front garden because they've got neighbours who shout towards them and treat them with no respect whatsoever. "It's very painful for me and my family and very painful for a lot of people I know." "I've been using this phrase Black Lives Matter quite a lot," "I'm not saying that all lives don't matter, I'm just saying that right now black people need support and they need help because of the racism going on all around the world. "Football is the biggest sport in the world. "As a professional footballers, not just as black professional footballers but as any race or any religion, it's massive to try and get this across. "Just for people not to treat us as if we're different people because we're all the same." please log in to view this image
Morning all. Kalvins a great lad. Always enjoy his impressive interviews. Future club captain perhaps?
Good morning, I haven't been online for a week as I was moving house. Have I missed much? I'm glad the football is almost back but at the moment it feels more like preparing for pre season friendlies than a promotion race. Maybe it'll all come back when we kick off.
Morning all. I was reading an interview with Garry Monk. He claims that any manager who says they can be ready for the restart is lying. My first reaction was laughter. There is one coach on the league who will have their team ready. My second reaction was to think he was being his excuse in early. I can see us starting very strong and with only 9 games left hopefully smash these remaining games.
Morning all Kalvin missed our last game with a knee injury, it didn’t sound like a quick fix either so the break will have done him good. The break has been longer than a preseason for the lads so hopefully no moans and groans from fans of a Bielsa team being tired at the end of a season. Beat Cardiff prevent Fulham from beating us and I’ll be a lot happier
Not really, the EFL will today agree what will happen when a season is interrupted by a pandemic, or similar, and how promotion and relegation should be determined in those circumstances. Then the season will be cancelled.
Good Morning to Matt and co from a dull Bardsey I want to take you back to 1964 today Why 64 well it so happens that we were in a 3 horse race for Promotion again Preston Sunderland and Leeds With 12 games to go Revie decided we needed more firepower so he bought Alan Peacock from Boro for £50 k We have replaced Peacock with Augstine can he do a Peacock who scored 6 goals in his 12 games I remember the game against PNE who had that beast Alex Dawson at Cehtre Forward what a torrid game he gave our defence so much so that Bremner pushed him into the advertising boards at the back of the goal .He went with a sickening crash and I thought he would be knocked out I am sure Billy thought so as well .but no he shook himself down and reentered the fray At the end we gained the promised land at last Preston missed out and we paid Boro another 5k for Peacock Will history repeat it self I wonder I hope so!
As much as I like Philips, as soon as the politics started I turn off. He's entitled to his views, but IMO sports shouldn't be used as a platform for politics because it's such a decisive subject, especially when race is involved. It's a pity he didn't mention the defacing of war memorials.
Kalvin will be like a beast when he returns. I remember when we played our first league match under Bielsa v Stoke in August 2018, I couldn't believe I was watching the same player Phillips playing in a different role, he was bouncing off the surface like a proper athlete, within weeks I proclaimed this lad is going to be a star & play for England. People thought I was crackers, yes Kalvin always had a bit of quality however what we were witnessing from him under Marcelo's guidance was of a different level altogether, the lad has since progressed into a top level footballer with plenty of premiership clubs ready to offer serious money for our revitalised star!
The 63/64 season I first saw Leeds. Such a shame Alan suffered so many injuries, he was a prolific goalscorer & surely would have gone on to greater success had he not been so injury-prone
Morning all. Never really taken any notice of women's football but very interesting to see the FA made the decision at the weekend to end the Women's Superleague on PPG and Liverpool are relegated. Surely sets the precedent for the EPL and EFL if the season doesn't finish ?
Fixtures (dates and times) have been announced, first two (Cardiff & Fulham) live on Sky. https://www.leedsunited.com/news/te...xtures-announced-for-remaining-2019-20-season
All games will be shown live but not all will be on Sky's regular channels for all Sky customers. The rest are being made available free to season ticket holders and I think non-season ticket holders get the option to watch too for £10 a game, might be on LUTV or something but not all on Sky unless I got that wrong.
