Well I said before kick off that the match would be a season defining game and it seems as if Friar Brian agrees with me. Having witnessed the Leeds United McFeelgood Factor Sleeper Express to the Premiership, Europe, Infinity and Beyond come off the rails in Nottingham, the Bald Controller suddenly wants a whole new load of rolling stock, with a call for four new players to be purchased in the January Non Sales.
Now this is going from the ridiculous to the extreme! Sure Leeds need another striker - to replace the injured Blackstock if nothing else, and the need for a pacey wide man has been obvious for two seasons now, but does McDermott really need another two players given the progress being made by the youngsters? Byram is on his way back, and when fully fit he will be like a new player added to the squad this season, and meanwhile players of the calibre of Warnock are parked on the bench. He can't have expected Pugh to have performed so well, so that's another bonus.
Rather than "spread thin", surely Leeds would do better to go for quality. Two good 'uns would be much more useful than four Average Joes when the season gets to the business end. There is probably a creeping paranoia at play based on the team's near total dependence upon McRoss for goals. If McCormack pulls up lame, it feels as if Leeds would be Mcfcuked.
Maybe the four names are his wish list and it is two from four that McDermott seeks. That would make more sense to me. I still think Zaha would be a better bet on loan than Gradel, but maybe both are on the list with Friar Brian saying one or the other. And the forwards? Well Becchio may be one option but as my beloved West Ham have discovered, fit forwards are not falling from trees at the moment. My tip would be young Kane from Spurs. He is big, mobile and can belt a ball hard.
So, has Friar Brian got twitchy? Two would complement what he has, four might disturb the harmony. It may be time to take a deep breath, take stock and think: the train has run pretty smoothly on the Feel Good Factor fuel so far so why risk everything by making too many changes?
To be fair he bought relatively few players in the summer; only Wootton and Murphy seem to have been significant purchases, maybe Zaliukas subsequently is on a decent contract but to get out of this division you are competing with far bigger spenders. I don't think four new players in is particularly unreasonable. To be able to switch to 4-4-2 he needs two decent wingers. For the forwards he needs a decent striker and a backup in case either Ross or the other guy gets injured (I'd have thought you'd know this from WHU). Part of the issue generally with Leeds is that they lack threat to draw players elsewhere, the relatively small number of threatening players are easily closed out of the game.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't bet against Stephen Hunt or Kevin Doyle as being on his list, though I'm not particularly keen on either.
By the way, it would have been nice to have taken a point from Forest away, partly because we all dislike the manager, but Brian's comment that they have been able to spend a fair bit of money over the past few seasons is on the button. If we can win our home games and beat the weaker clubs away, we should stay in and around the reckoning.
I'm also hoping to see the back of some of the carthorses we have in the reserves.
Mccormack or the other guy clearly not a true fan when you cant name the second striker watch from ya armchair do you. Radio bates
DeleteClearly not a leeds fan then armachair of bates fm for match coverage cant even name our other striker
DeleteEr, "the other guy" was a reference to the striker we are presumably to buy, not the one (Smith) we are currently playing. Maybe you should find an armchair where you can learn to read.
DeleteI wasn't at the game but from what I'm hearing the 2-1 result was flattering it could of been worse. We need to add a couple of big names in the January Sales
ReplyDeleteyeh hf.i know you have written this cos maybe u had a few upsetting comments on your OTHER leeds post TODAY! lol leeds have made do with no wingers and too many CM'S all season.but look where we are,just outside the playoffs on gd! if we can finally have a plan B we will do great.
ReplyDeleteanyway,what are the chances of you going to a WH game next season in the championship?
ya didnt make it when they were at the dizzy heights of 16th in the prem
ooooooh
To be honest, we should be down by a few more goals. Our defence was doing a fine job just that we do need more wide players and a pacy striker. No too sure if we can get them during January!!
ReplyDeleteNob jockey
ReplyDeleteAnother dire effort. Leeds need a striker, a playmaker and at least one winger. Does it feel nice trolling at Christmas? Just so you know, little quips, cliched and puns you attempt are just not funny. If your writing was satirical or witty it would be a decent read but it's just childlike and repetative.
ReplyDelete*You're*
DeleteIf you're going to criticise somebody for their style of writing at least try to be grammatically correct.
I bet you had that all written before the game. Lazy arsed journalism from someone who jousts rehashes stuff that he reads elsewhere. Nev the geek strikes again.
ReplyDeletei think brian mcdermott knows how to do the job mate, unless you fancy taking it on, you seem to have all the answers. you should give your expertise to west ham, then they can win the league in may.
ReplyDeleteI knew as soon as we lost we'd have a new blog post from our resident crank; i think mr hammers fan you need to be concerned by your own teams slide into the bottom 3 of the premiership otherwise heaven forbid you will be playing us next season.
ReplyDeleteCouple more things -
ReplyDelete1. I watched the Brian McDermott interview this morning and he actually said "three or four".
2. This blog. I had it on "hide" on newsnow for a very long time as a) I thought it was the usual trolling site finding its way onto the newsnow list and b) there are few sides I dislike more than West Ham. But actually I find the style OK and the posts, well they feel semi-informed if you are a Leeds fan but they are by and large fair comment for someone coming from outside. I'd point out that the comments, however aggressive, seem to be usually approved. I compare that with a couple of Leeds blogs where if you post a comment disagreeing with the blog owner (e.g. expressing an opinion that Beckford might have been a better finisher than Becchio) it never makes it past the "my place my rules" filter. So if you're thinking HF is upset over comments made on his post, bear in mind he approved them for publication.
Amen.
DeleteWould be that it is rob the gob shite atkinsons site you refer to. I constantly bombard his threads as he is an arrogant prick who thinks he knows all
DeleteNo. I don't mind Rob Atkinson, personally.
DeleteYes indeed...Pratkinson (soothsayer) is a "gob shite" and knows F.All about football in the present day! He looks a bit like podgy paddy too!
DeleteAren't you supposed to be a Leeds Fan Jack-off?
DeleteHF, we all know its you...come clean, the Karma might help your sad Team's form...
Like i said yesterday,we need a creative midfield player,someone to find that killer pass,and another striker,to take the weight off ross.to many times this season,we r been over run in midfield,so four players would be right in my book.
ReplyDeletecan't you stumble into the Thames and drown?
ReplyDeletebeen a leeds supporter 40 years,u need a winger,a goal scorer and a good midfielder.
ReplyDeleteI THINK THE ONE AREA LEEDS NEED TO SORT OUT IS DEFENDING
ReplyDeleteWE HAVE CONCEDED SO MANY GOALS FROM CROSSES OR SET PIECES IS BEYOND A JOKE
WE HAVE TO ADRESS THIS AREA OTHERWISE WERE ONLY FOOLING OURSELVES
Must be hard running two blogs eh? Rob Atkinson
ReplyDeleteYeh, whose birthday is it next week Soothsayer??,
ReplyDeleteBob English? Paul Madeley? Bobby Collins? John Charles? FFS.