Pantomime season at Elland Road

Leeds United’s season should really run from November to January because it’s just one long pantomime. Since the heady days of the Champions League semi-final of 2001 it’s been one big debacle. The song promises us ups and downs but the last 12 years has seen significantly more downs than ups.

The problem is, just when we think our luck is changing it turns out just to be another crest on that roller-coaster ride which is being a Leeds United fan. Take-over after take-over is mooted and promised, due diligence is done but they have rarely come off and when they do it only seems to bring more turmoil.

Newcastle United fans protested against owner Mike Ashley the other week by staging a walk out on the 69th minute of their game against Cardiff City. It must be difficult for them, finishing 10th in the Premiership!! I understand some of their concerns, lack of investment, selling your best payers etc but they don’t realise how good they have it, they haven’t had it half as bad as us. I had expected life under the ownership of Massimo Cellino to be interesting but events of the last couple of weeks have been extraordinary. Pantomime season has most certainly started at Elland Road.

The McDermott sacking/non-sacking was clearly a sign of things to come, but news of security sweeps and spy cameras were all the more bizarre. Former managing director David Haigh was interviewed by the police last week in relation to the cameras and has subsequently stated that “They were put in place following reports which he received between the end of January and early March this year alleging the recent misuse of Class A drugs in and around the boardroom.” These are certainly extraordinary revelations and tie in with an article in The Observer back in April. The question is who is the “high-profile figure with a considerable reputation within the sport” the article mentions?

Haigh was also in the news this week after the news that Sport Capital had issued a winding-up order, due to be heard on 9th June, for the recovery of a loan made to the club. Cellino is understood to have already paid back a significant proportion of a £825,000 made to the club but this winding-up order relates to another £950,000 loan made by Sport Capital. This indicates the financial situation at the club may be worse than we thought and worse than Cellino thought.

Indications of this came as it was announced that club legends Peter Lorimer, Eddie Gray and Dominic Matteo were to be released from their positions at the club. More concerning are reports that large numbers of staff are to be released from positions at Elland Road and Thorp Arch with the academy complex being shut over the summer to save money. We knew the club was in financial difficulty and so it should come as no surprise that we are cutting our cloth but it was hoped Cellino’s arrival would bring a massive injection of cash. He perhaps doesn’t have the funds some had initially though.

Last weeks news comes as a bit of a reality check for those hoping for investment and targeting promotion within two years. With no sign of the re-purchase of Elland Road or Thorp Arch it seems like promises are already being broken. Perhaps Cellino is right though, perhaps we need to realise that we are not a Premiership team and therefore must run the club accordingly. GFH certainly mismanaged the club financially, Cellino may need to put us back on an even keel before the building towards promotion can even begin. Whatever this summer brings it’s going to be interesting and I’m sure we haven’t heard the last of David Haigh’s revelations. One day, just one day this pantomime may be over and we can stop being a side show and people may talk about us for footballing reasons again.