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THE DECLINE OF LEEDS 29.11.02 Previous Page As
they like to say, football is a funny old game. When
I first started watching football, Leeds were just a newly promoted top-flight
team, having finished top of the old Second Division league in the 1989-90
season. And in just two seasons, Wlko's men stunned everybody by clinching the
league title, no thanks to Man U's dramatic slump which saw them lose 3
successive games on the home straight (including a 0-2 reversal against bitter
rivals Liverpool). After that, it has been a quiet few seasons for Leeds - that
is until the arrival of George Graham. Why
Graham, you might ask? People might criticise him for building up a 'Boring
Boring Arsenal' but as long as it brings in the results, who cares? I still
remember the typical George Graham formation - a tough-tackling back 4(does
Adams-Bould-Dixon-Winterburn ring a bell?), a hardworking, if unspectacular
midfield, and just 1 deadly striker (Ian Wright). And when he started his career
at Leeds, he built his team in exactly the same style! But
it is not the 'Boring Boring Leeds' style that I admire him for. It is his
ability to bring on talented youngsters that I am most impressive with. At
Arsenal he brought the best out Alan Smith (I don't think he is related to that
current England hothead), Tony Adams, Michael Thomas, Kelvin Campbell and Paul
Merson, just to name a few. At
Leeds I half-expected him to build his team based on the future. And he
certainly did not disappoint me. But it takes time to build a good team. If you don't believe me, just look at how long Alex Ferguson took to build up today's Man U (till today I still wonder if he would still be around to build today's team if he had not won the FA cup in 1990). But once the youngsters started to bloom, I always believed Leeds would be a new force to be reckon with. The
Arrival of O'Leary After
the acrimonious departure of Graham, in stepped his pupil David O'Leary. In a
way, he was very lucky - the foundation has already been laid for him. With a
talented right back (Kelly), the best left-footer in the business (Kewell), the
best free-kick specialist in the ELP (Harte). In my opinion he is better than a
certain fellow wearing a No.7 red jersey.) a midfielder who scores goals like
nobody's business (Bowyer), a potential England international (Woodgate) and a
keeper who forced one of Westlife's members to quit football (Robinson) to form
the nucleus of this team, the fans had room for optimism. And with a generous
(if not reckless) transfer fund O'Leary bolstered his squad further by buying a
potential Juventus target (Dacourt), another exciting striker to blaze the pitch
(Robbie Keane), a grossly over-priced England international (Ferdinand), a king
of headers (Viduka) and an Anfield favourite, "The God" (Fowler). And
hey, I haven't even mention expensive supporting casts like Bridges, Bakke,
Batty, Johnson, Wilcox, Huckerby etc etc etc! The
young guns that O'Leary has at his disposal plus what seemingly turned out to be
great buys seem to be paying great dividends. In the 1999/2000 season, Leeds
were simply unbeatable, going 9 league games unbeaten (that is almost 1/4 of the
season!), including an astonishing 7 wins on the trot. But surprise surprise, a
lack of depth and experience halted Leeds challenge to the title. But still they
finished an impressive 3rd in the season. At Europe, they proved to be
irresistible too. 2 semi-finals in the UFEA Cup and Champions League in two
successive seasons is by no means a fluke. At that time, they played such
breathtaking football that even skeptics like me started to believe that we were
about to witnessing a new force in England in this new decade. But
alas, just two seasons later, there is more gloom than boom for Leeds fans. So
why does a team that promises so much slump so dramatically now? Below are just
some of my conclusions.
Poor El Tel does not have money to bolster his squad. And worse still, some of the players Leeds bought are proving to be costly white elephants. Peter Ridsdale also has to take some of the blame for believing in the policy that big money can buy success. Secondly,
El Tel may have claimed that injuries have robbed him of his key players - the
latest victim being Barmby. But in such a highly competitive atmosphere,
injuries are stupid excuses to give for failure. Injuries have also proven that
Leeds do not have adequate cover - a key ingredient to success especially in
today's game where a top player is expected to play over 60 games per year. Leeds
too, is now in a form of transitional stage. Having been a football couch potato
for so long, I have noticed that it is impossible to sustain success over a
period of time with the same bunch of players. Players age. They can lose form
and motivation. And there are always competitors out there wanting to outshine
you. That is why a successful team must always have a mix of seasoned
campaigners, promising young talent and exciting new signings. Although I have
not been watching football nowadays (thanks to football commercialisation), I
can sense that Leeds players are low in moral. Key players like Bowyer and Harte
are not as good as before (or indeed if they can even win a place in the
starting 11). Financial woes mean El Tel will be forced to sell more players
before he can buy. But with a transfer window in place and football's current
financial woes, I will be surprised if Leeds are able to clinch a life-saving
deal and bring in exciting fresh faces to thrill the fans this season. But
I believe in the ability of El Tel. He has proved what he can do during his
stint with Tottenham, England and Middlesbourgh, although he has never been in
such precarious position before. But with Leeds now in such disarray, I think it
is only fair that he be given some time to do a good job. But I know fans are an
impatient bunch of people. They want instant success. That is why I do not know
if El Tel is able to cope with the pressure and bring in the necessary changes
and results. Or indeed if he will still be around after the latest round of
games. But painful measures will definitely have to take place, including the
departure of key players to help ease the club's financial woes. My
verdict for Leeds this season? They are probably too good to go down. No
offences please but I do believe that there are at least 3 worse teams in the
EPL that Leeds. But this will be one season that all Leeds fans want to forget. If
Mr Venables happens to be reading this article, I just wish to tell him that if
you think you can't balance the books and at the same time satisfy the fans
expectations, you better scramble before you become Leeds Utd Public Enemy No.
1. And Leeds would be wise to find a replacement who can survive on a shoestring
budget. But if you thrive under this challenge, I will give you my full support.
But football is a cruel and there is no second chance for failures so even if
you are defiant, your days may be numbered if results do not go your way. (sigh). That's football for you. Football Junkie (Guest Writer) Latest Entries by other writers 28.11.02 : Curse of the Gong 23.11.02 : Manchester United 5 - 3 Newcastle United 18.11.02 : A Derby To Forget |
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