Leeds Utd v West Ham Utd Match Thread

[Irish Ian]

Oh dear Radz giving it out on Twitter again. He made a fool of himself with his Forshaw tweet and now it's come back to bite on the backside.

whats he said?

I dont have twittr

[Finnatic]

What injuries are we missing? Llorente that's it really. Ayling has been dreadful this season and Koch never plays anyway.

It wasn't injuries who:
Turned down Noa Lang
Panic bought Dan James for £25m
Said Forshaw was a new signing
Let Pablo go without a replacement
Picks the same players every week
Never gives Gelhardt a chance
Makes Firpo a crap defender

[1964white]

Raph injured

Ice-packs on both thighs.

[SG90]

Bang on

At some point recruitment needs to be discussed to.

Has Orta bought well since promotion? You'd have to say no.

Is he solely responsible? Probably not as we know MB didn't want De Paul and Lang to start with, are we buying players because they run about a lot?

Pretty much!

The fact we're still relying on Cooper, Ayling, Dallas, Klich, Roberts and Forshaw is embarrassing!

[Scoobychief]

If that's the case we're fucked if raph is injured

[SG90]

I was confident & positive we'd be fine last season.

This season, you could see all the problems from the onset.

I'm just hoping for victories now rather than expecting them.

Me too.

[1964white]

I'd get Gelhardt on for the last ten mins now. Why not? We need inspiration from somewhere.

Young Joe must wonder what he has to do to replace our goal-shy forwards

[Irish Ian]

Pretty much!

The fact we're still relying on Cooper, Ayling, Dallas, Klich, Roberts and Forshaw is embarrassing!

You know as well as I do you cant bring in a whole new side in one swoop.
It will take four more transfer windows to cycle through this squad at the earliest.

I get the feeling ( and I hope I am right) that the club sees at least three of the U23s as starters either next season or the one after.

We have enough quality to be well above where we are in the league with our current squad.

[Alphonso49uk]

Im not bothered by the lack of plan B....Im more bothered by the lack of plan A

[Cjay]

It's only match what 6?

We look tired already.

If this side haven't got the superior fitness then that is real concern because we go man for man and most teams have us beat man for man talent wise.

Our fitness was our big weapon but to me we don't seem to have that now?

1 season to far with minimal changes, the lads are exhausted

[SG90]

whats he said?

I dont have twittr

[SG90]

Sounds like someone feeling the pressure to me.

[SG90]

It's only match what 6?

We look tired already.

If this side haven't got the superior fitness then that is real concern because we go man for man and most teams have us beat man for man talent wise.

Our fitness was our big weapon but to me we don't seem to have that now?

1 season to far with minimal changes, the lads are exhausted

Yep and unfortunately we've got nothing in midfield to mix it up. I'd try Bate tbh or recall Bogusz in January.

[becchio bear]

Ok I have calmed down now.

Some insane ramblings

Roberts puzzles me and I have to say bringing him on for Raphinha - Twice! and them playing him as a wide player is the most baffling substitutions Bielsa has ever made! I understand Raph having to come off as he isnt 100% but Roberts out wide is even worse than in the middle. Please Please Bielsa give Gelhardt the chance to show us his what he has got. I am actually sick of the sight of Roberts in a Leeds shirt now. He is Championship at best at the minute and needs a loan out.

It is as if Leeds are convinced he is a turd who can be polished up and then sold on at some point for a hefty profit.

Dallas and Klich don't look as if they have 90 minutes in them. And we had no-one on the bench who could come on for them and shore up our midfield.. Forshaw injured again? Another month on the sidelines.

A point at home today was not the end of the world but we didn't have enough on the bench to even try and see that out.


Harrison is such a better player when he reacts instinctively or spontaneously, but give him time to think and he stuffs up. It was his daydreaming that let to them overturning the ball for the OG.

Firpo is safety first with his passing but to be fair to him it must be awful having to play alongside Cooper who has no pace, and likes to back off players. Oh and did you see Cooper with his arms around Antonio today defending one of their corners?

KP had an off day which made it worse when they went two up top and forced KP into centre mid for a while, and as per usual the huge hole opened up in midfield which allowed them to control large periods of possession.


Rodrigo was immense first half but they managed to keep us on the back foot for most of the second half and as a result he was isolated at times.
Shackleton was ok at RWB but for me he needs to be in the middle, making nuisance of himself.
Raphinha is the best player we have signed.... ever. Or will be. He is that good, three goals from the wing already and hopefully he will make double figures this season.
Meslier is probably wondering what he needs to do to have a quiet game.
Cooper made some great blocks but imo he should be in his final season here. His lack of pace is a worry as well as those hands of his...
James looked as if he was playing on his own. We will need to be patient with him. I think that was a planned 45 minutes today, he has a new kid and probably hasn't slept all week.
Cresswell looked the part. He wont have a more torrid game all season I imagine, he did make a few errors but it was a confident performance and hopefully the centre mid issues wont be as difficult to resolve now. His passing wasnt great but he did very well against Antonio, Benhrama and Bowen.

Overall the subs were not great. I get Harrison for James, but Roberts... I wonder if he was worried about WHs physicality and that is why he opted against Jimmy?

In hindsight at 80 minutes I would have liked a def mid to come on to help KP out but we had no options there and paid the price.

Go with the Roberts, Meslier, James and Raphinha in bold from me. Just done a preview so ignore the other bold stuff lol.

First half we played well. Second half went downhill. Antonio shouldn't have been on the pitch imo to be able to score. Geldhart needs a chance, Roberts needs sending out on loan. I'm disappointed as I think after the first half this was our game for the taking, seems cruel it was taken away.

[Boo Radley]

We are a carbon copy of Sheffield United last year now. Management telling themselves that they are unlucky being caught with late goals, everything will be fine when players come back from injury, and that underlying implication that because of last season we are too good to go down.

Down they went for three good reasons, one was that they couldn’t score, even when they were on top. Second reason was that they couldn’t defend when the pressure on the defence grew. Finally, they lost confidence and began to believe that they would lose in the tight games and that became a self fulfilling prophecy.

That is us now. Something major needs to change quickly or we will be adrift with massive pressure growing from the support within Elland Road. That won’t help.

[Mick Jones shoulder]

Bielsa is as predictable as our cat

Other coaches at this level have sussed him out.

It ain't difficult at the moment 64

[Cjay]

Yep and unfortunately we've got nothing in midfield to mix it up. I'd try Bate tbh or recall Bogusz in January.

Bate, Gelhardt, Drameh, Summerville, we need fresh energy and this is all we can do now.

[Cjay]

We are a carbon copy of Sheffield United last year now. Management telling themselves that they are unlucky being caught with late goals, everything will be fine when players come back from injury, and that underlying implication that because of last season we are too good to go down.

Down they went for three good reasons, one was that they couldn’t score, even when they were on top. Second reason was that they couldn’t defend when the pressure on the defence grew. Finally, they lost confidence and began to believe that they would lose in the tight games and that became a self fulfilling prophecy.

That is us now. Something major needs to change quickly or we will be adrift with massive pressure growing from the support within Elland Road. That won’t help.

Agree sadly

Many of our fans may take offense at the Sheffield United comparison but as you show the similarities are there.

You can't stand still at this level and take things for granted I am afraid

We also as a club have a long history of wilting under pressure and the pressure grows daily.

[SG90]

We are a carbon copy of Sheffield United last year now. Management telling themselves that they are unlucky being caught with late goals, everything will be fine when players come back from injury, and that underlying implication that because of last season we are too good to go down.

Down they went for three good reasons, one was that they couldn’t score, even when they were on top. Second reason was that they couldn’t defend when the pressure on the defence grew. Finally, they lost confidence and began to believe that they would lose in the tight games and that became a self fulfilling prophecy.

That is us now. Something major needs to change quickly or we will be adrift with massive pressure growing from the support within Elland Road. That won’t help.

Reason four, they didn't think the squad needed improving and the players would keep up those levels.

[WhiteRose]

Trying to come to terms with relegation now and enjoy the last season with Bielsa at the helm, easier said than done but survival will be a bonus.