The #LUFC Breakfast Debate (Monday 19th August) - Leeds fans are fed up with all the excuses
Good Morning. It's Monday 19th August, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road...
We’re fed up with all the excuses
Leeds' financial situation and limited time frame are no secret in the football world. The pressure is on, and the Elland Road hierarchy are facing increasing scrutiny. The clock is ticking; Leeds have until Friday 30th August to secure reinforcements, or face the dire consequences. Parashoot payments are running out too, and when they do, any kind of advantage the Whites hold in the Championship have gone forever.
We could still lose the services of Max Wober and Wilfred Gnonto, so unless the 49ers bring in multiple signings, there's a real possibility that we could be looking at a squad of less than 20 players! By now, every club and their dog will know Leeds have money to burn, and not much time to spend it! You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know how that one will play out! The Elland Road hierarchy are quickly becoming as popular as a Keir Starmer conference, in Clacton-on-Sea.
Every season it’s the same. We struggle to find talent, or end up over-paying, whilst our elite players (with two or three exceptions) are allowed to leave for fees well under their market value! Every club makes bad signings, but has anybody ever heard of another JKA catastrophe or the the time the Director of Football allowed all their decent players to leave on-loan after getting relegated - No, well, there's a good reason for that!
We lose Rutter for £40m, but then have to pay Hoffenheim almost £6m of that. That won’t be anywhere near as bad if Gnonto leaves. It has been strongly suggested that FC Zurich’s sell-on clause is between 25% - 35%. Obviously Leeds don’t have any sell-on clauses with Summerville, Gray, Rutter or Kamara.
It looks highly unlikely that once again we won't come close to filling our loan quota either! Bringing in young talent from the top leagues seems alien to us, yet every other club outside the top flight use this method to excess; it was one of the reasons why Leicester City, Ipswich and Southampton finished above us last season!
Stalemate or just stale?
West Brom and Leeds played out a soul-destroying, put your head in an oven goalless draw on Saturday lunchtime, with the only cheers from the crowd coming on 95 minutes, thankful for the final whistle. Daniel Farke sought to calm the nerves of his players after a turbulent week, opting for a defensive strategy at the Hawthorns, to kick-start Leeds' revival. A clean sheet away from home can be seen as a positive, highlighted by a solid display from skipper Pascal Struijk. However, the attacking play was dire; It lacked any kind of rhythm or coordination, with the midfield and forward line on completely different wavelengths at times.
Losing your two best players, and conceding six at home in two games had a knock-on effect on his squad; he said as much during his pre match presser. Whilst a mind numbingly lacklustre 0-0 draw will do little to lift the current toxicity around Elland Road, it won’t make it any worse!
Leeds go all out on Clarke
Jack Clarke has emerged as Leeds number one target, with a suggested price tag of up to £25m being proposed. The 23 year old started his career at Elland Road at the age of 9. He worked his way up the age groups, breaking into the first team during the 2018/19 season. After an impressive campaign, Leeds decided to cash in on their star asset, accepting a £10m offer from Spurs, but failed to make an impression there.
After a series of failed loan moves, he joined the Black Cats for just £750,000, plus a hefty sell-on clause, but has been making great progress ever since. In truth, Clarke offers a similar kind of service that Summerville provided, but not quite as good. With talent in short demand, and the transfer window closing shortly, Leeds may need to fork out £25m if they want him back!
