Mighty Leeds Weblog

A fundraising lunch saw the great and the good of Wilkinson’s 1992 title winning side show their support for their old manager Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter When you do something special for Leeds United, supporters will make sure they return the favour, and then some. Fans clubbed together to fund a statue of Don Revie, unveiled in 2012. Marcelo Bielsa is muralised across the city on various architecture. John Charles, Eddie Gray, Gary Speed, Pablo Hernandez and Raphinha have all been the subject of artwork. So, many feel a permanent tribute to the great Howard Wilkinson is long overdue, and are doing something about it. The 82-year-old remains the last English manager to win the top flight while at Leeds and Thorp Arch was his brain child. Think of all the academy products and England internationals who have passed through those doors. Think of all the talent that has trodden the turf of St George’s Park, the base for national teams in which Wilkinson was instrumental...

WHAT A WEEK Words by: Chris McMenamy Walking to Elland Road from town, piss wet through and coughing up glow in the dark phlegm, I contemplated watching Daniel Farke’s chaotic Whites from the comfort of a warm pub, or even TSB headquarters. “But sure we’ve already had Wednesday?” I tried to convince myself, but the magnetism of Leeds United facing Liverpool under the lights in LS11 was just too great to ignore. They couldn’t again, could they? They almost bloody did, coming from behind twice to draw 3-3. Farke came into this week staring down the barrel of a publicly discussed sacking, needing positive results from matches against Chelsea and/or Liverpool. Two games, four points and a whole lot of heart shown to fight back from being behind twice, it’s just shy of being a Christmas miracle. Despite Leeds’ best efforts to replicate their lightning start from Wednesday night, a much maligned Liverpool side appeared to have the quality and, more importantly, confidence to weather ...

By Graham Smyth The YEP’s take and off-camera moments from Leeds United’s incredible 3-3 draw against Liverpool at Elland Road. Leeds United fought back twice to earn a vital point against Liverpool as Daniel Farke proved he can change Premier League games. The Whites looked dead and buried at 2-0 down yet they ended the night all square and celebrating after the most entertaining and dramatic second halves at Elland Road. Here's the YEP take. Good day Daniel Farke A week that was largely expected to yield no points from three of the toughest games has resulted in four points. A team that was finding it so hard to score goals fired in eight against a trio of elite outfits. The win over Chelsea was truly impressive, the fightback against Liverpool arguably even more so. And it was the manager's substitutions that changed it. Willy Gnonto The winger has had the most frustrating season so far but his impact off the bench was integral in the comeback. A switch in form...

By Kyle Newbould Lessons learned from another brilliant night at Elland Road as Leeds United draw 3-3 against Liverpool. Leeds United capped off a brilliant week in dramatic fashion after twice coming from behind to draw 3-3 at home to Liverpool on Saturday. Goals from Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Anton Stach and a 96th-minute Ao Tanaka effort earned Daniel Farke’s side another big point in front of their own supporters. Like Manchester City a week ago, Leeds fought back from 2-0 down to draw level at 2-2 before then conceding a third, albeit this time they had another response. The point lifts Farke’s side up to 16th and below are the YEP’s key lessons learned from another great night under the lights in West Yorkshire. January transfer priorities have changed Lukas Nmecha’s midweek hamstring injury saw Noah Okafor start but he failed to offer the same level of physical presence, allowing the Liverpool defenders to focus on Calvert-Lewin and settle into the game between them. Nmec...

By Charlotte Coates Leeds United's supporters might have gone into the week with a sense of dread - but they have ended it with renewed hope of staying in the Premier League. Their heroic comeback to draw 3-3 against champions Liverpool at Elland Road capped an eight-days spell in which they picked up four points in three of their toughest fixtures. Sky Sports' Gary Neville summed up Leeds' week perfectly: "We thought it was a week that could condemn Leeds to the Championship, but it has been a week of hope for Leeds." When under-pressure Daniel Farke's side stepped out at Etihad Stadium to take on Manchester City on 29 November, they were locked in the bottom three. They fell behind in the first minute. City were expected to go on and post a cricket score after taking a 2-0 lead, but Leeds fought back to level the match - only falling 3-2 to a 91st-minute Phil Foden winner. Despite being on a four-game losing run, Leeds optimism was on the rise wi...

By Graham Smyth Daniel Farke was far from happy with substitute Ao Tanaka before his added-time equaliser against Liverpool. Leeds United midfielder Ao Tanaka felt his manager's wrath before saving the day with a stoppage time equaliser against Liverpool. Daniel Farke reacted furiously after watching second half substitute Tanaka step out of the side's defensive block and allow the Reds to attack right down the middle of the pitch as they went 3-2 up through Dominik Szoboszlai. Mercifully for the Japan international there was a chance to redeem himself and he grabbed it with both hands, firing in a 96th-minute equaliser to hand Leeds a precious point in their survival battle. "If you change the base formation and have to invest so much to come back and equalise, the easiest thing is how we want to act in a low block," said Farke. "It's 4-5-1 and we never step out of the centre. But with all the emotions, 2-2, we opened the passing gap, two passes, of ...

By Graham Smyth Arne Slot saw his Liverpool side pegged back twice in an amazing 3-3 draw against Leeds United at Elland Road. Arne Slot says Liverpool can take positives away from Elland Road despite twice giving up a lead to draw 3-3 with Leeds United. The under-fire Reds boss watched his men take a 2-0 lead through a pair of Hugo Ekitiké goals inside the first five minutes of the second half. But Leeds roared back, inspired by a triple swap made by Daniel Farke that brought Brenden Aaronson, Willy Gnonto and Ao Tanaka into the game. Gnonto won a penalty, scored by Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Aaronson fed Anton Stach for the equaliser and after Dominik Szoboszlai made it 3-2, Tanaka grabbed a 96th-minute leveller. Slot expressed disbelief at the result, the manner in which his team conceded and the 'way the whole game went' for Liverpool. "We felt there were so many positives to take from this game," he said. "It's happened to us many times, except...

Leeds 3-3 Liverpool: Arne Slot sees his house of cards fall down again as hosts fight back to heap pressure on beleaguered boss By IAN LADYMAN, FOOTBALL EDITOR Maybe Arne Slot knew it was coming. Maybe he has already grown used to that feeling of dread and inevitability when his Liverpool team are placed under real pressure. Maybe he knew it when, with his team clinging to a 3-2 lead, the assistant referee signalled nine minutes of added time. Maybe he knew it when Leeds won successive corners with three of those nine minutes remaining. Certainly when he saw his goalkeeper Alisson Becker half come for the ball and then change his mind, Slot must have suspected his house of cards was about to fall once again. So when Leeds substitute Ao Tanaka reacted to Alisson’s hesitancy to crash home a dropping ball for the equalising goal, Liverpool’s beleaguered manager was probably the least surprised man in this part of West Yorkshire. This is Slot’s world right now. This is his team...

By Leon Wobschall WHEN the Premier League fixtures were announced back in June, the notion that Liverpool boss Arne Slot would enter this particular game under more pressure than his Leeds United counterpart Daniel Farke would have been deemed as an incredulous proposition by virtually every football observer. That he was, in fact, pointed to a rather intriguing top-flight season for once. It’s certainly been an interesting week or so which will see all teams negotiate three matchdays in a small window of time. After a goalless first half, interesting was a very understated word to describe a madcap second half which saw six goals scored and Leeds rescue a last-gasp point courtesy of substitute Ao Tanaka as the roof came off Elland Road. An early brace inside two minutes and ten seconds from Hugo Etikike seemingly provided succour for Slot. A triple change revived Leeds wonderfully midway through the half. A VAR call got them back in the game following a clumsy challenge by I...

By Stuart Rayner "It was a crazy night," reflected Jaka Bijol after setting Leeds United on their way to a memorable 3-1 win over world champions Chelsea. Crazy nights are when Elland Road is at its best, and when it is, Leeds often are too. "(It) was a little bit welcome to the Premier League, welcome to Leeds," said Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca. He was talking specifically about Estevao, the wonderkid he substituted at half-time, but it went wider. Daniel Farke rightly broils at the use of "must-win" in December but the manager perhaps needed a victory over either Chelsea or Liverpool on Saturday to be confident of not getting his cards before Christmas. Many Leeds fans are not totally sold on the man who took them back into the Premier League but more important was the chance to get out of the relegation zone. So they played their part in Leeds being on “full gas”. "I didn't have the feeling at all we were not one unit," said F...

By Graham Smyth The YEP’s verdict and off-camera moments from the 3-1 victory against Chelsea at Elland Road. Leeds United produced one of the best Elland Road Premier League nights in recent memory with their beating of Chelsea. A star-studded Blues side was thoroughly beaten, losing the physical battle and failing to prevent Leeds from causing real problems all evening in a 3-1 win for the hosts. Here's the YEP take. Good day Daniel Farke The manager has been under real pressure and rightly scrutinised over defensive issues, performances and most importantly results. But the gameplan for Chelsea matched the execution. It was obvious at Man City that the players were playing for him but what they gave him at Elland Road was above and beyond the call of duty. Farke got it spot on and his players delivered. Ethan Ampadu It's been a tough few weeks for the skipper and his performances haven't been consistently great but against his former club he was imperious...

By Graham Smyth What Leeds United produced in their win over Chelsea proved that the fans and Daniel Farke can have their cake and eat it. Mood swings are all the rage in football but there was nothing flaky about the rage and concern that was building around Farke and his job security at Elland Road. Performance levels had dropped, at least on the road, they were conceding the same goal repeatedly and most importantly of all they were losing games. Regardless of how deserved the individual results were or were not, three points from a possible 21 is relegation form in anyone's book. A three-game stretch against Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool therefore took on the most daunting, unappealing look for a manager in the firing line. So his side had to come out firing. At City they did, eventually. It took a half-time intervention from the manager and a 3-5-2 formation that Pep Guardiola's men really struggled to get to grips with. Leeds lost that game but the way they...

Leeds ended a four-match losing run to move out of the relegation zone. Mark Walker Daniel Farke said it was “a great night for everyone involved with Leeds United” after his side beat Chelsea 3-1 at Elland Road to climb out of the Premier League relegation zone. Slovenia defender Jaka Bijol’s thumping header and Ao Tanaka’s superb 25-yard effort gave Leeds a 2-0 interval lead. Chelsea substitute Pedro Neto pulled one back early in the second half, but Dominic Calvert-Lewin restored Leeds’ two-goal advantage in one of their best displays of the season, which lifted some of the pressure on their manager. Farke, whose side halted a four-game losing run, said: “It felt like it was a long time coming, but the players deserve to have a night like this because I can’t really remember one poor home performance in the last 15 months. “There have been many performances during the season where we deserved more points and tonight it was an excellent performance. “We wanted to be bac...

By Stuart Rayner When the Premier League fixtures came out in June, Manchester City, Chelsea, then Liverpool looked a bit of a pre-Christmas write-off but there was one important factor which gave Leeds United a fighting chance – the final two games were at Elland Road. Howard Wilkinson, the former Leeds manager inducted into the National Football Museum's Hall of Fame at half-time not least for beating Manchester United to the title in 1992, could have told his old club a thing or two about not respecting reputations but it soon became clear they had got that message loud and clear. Strengthened by a change of formation, revitalised by road-testing it in a stirring comeback at Manchester City and roared on by a passionate crowd, Leeds claimed a deserved 3-1 win over Chelsea that put them back on the point-per-game benchmark and hauled them out of the relegation zone. It might even have kept manager Daniel Farke in a job, which Wilkinson, the long-time chairman of the Leagu...

By Lee Sobot Leeds United took on title-chasing Chelsea under the Elland Road lights. Leeds United put a huge dent in Chelsea’s title challenge and took themselves out of the Premier League dropzone by sending Elland Road wild with a brilliant 3-1 win against the Blues. Leeds made a very bright start, quickly pushing Chelsea back and peppering the Blues box, one effort from Anton Stach blocked and another deflected behind for a corner. The Blues were under the pump and the Whites went ahead from the following corner, Jaka Bijol flying through the area and powering a header past keeper Robert Sanchez with just six minutes on the clock. Chelsea's response was limited, a terrific tackle from Whites captain Ethan Ampadu keeping the pressure on and setting the tone for a physical Whites. Leeds then survived a moment of panic in the 15th minute as keeper Lucas Perri failed to deal with a deflected Enzo Fernandez cross into the box but Joao Pedro was unable to capitalise and L...

Leeds 3-1 Chelsea: A superb performance eased the pressure on Daniel Farke and saw the Whites climb out of the bottom three Mark Walker Leeds produced their best display of the season in a stunning 3-1 home win against Chelsea to climb out of the Premier League’s bottom three. Jaka Bijol headed Leeds into an early lead with his first goal for the club and Ao Tanaka arrowed a brilliant strike into the bottom corner for his first of the season two minutes before half-time. Chelsea pulled one back soon after the restart through substitute Pedro Neto but Dominic Calvert-Lewin restored Leeds’ two-goal advantage as the Yorkshire side snapped a four-game losing run to ease some of the pressure on under-fire boss Daniel Farke. The Londoners beat Barcelona 3-0 at Stamford Bridge last week and held Arsenal 1-1 with 10 men on Sunday but they were ambushed at Elland Road and lost ground on leaders Arsenal and Manchester City. A fierce rivalry stretching back to the late 1960s resumed a...

The match verdict on Leeds United's display vs Chelsea in tonight's Premier League game Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter Daniel Farke has been accused of being too stubborn by Leeds United fans, but his willingness to change his formation led to his side claiming their first points since October. Leeds supporters had begged the under-pressure Farke to keep the 3-5-2 system that worked so well in the second half against Manchester City - and the manager obliged, much to fan delight. Jaka Bijol's header, Ao Tanaka's super strike and Dominic Calvert-Lewin's tap-in proved that in order to survive in the Premier League, Leeds and Farke must adapt to their strengths. Every tackle, throw-in and corner won in the opening five minutes was greeted with an ovation from many in the stands. Match-goers were soon bouncing when Bijol craned his neck to guide the ball home from a corner after six minutes, with Robert Sanchez's gloves beaten by power. The goalkeep...

By Graham Smyth Howard Wilkinson was honoured during the half-time break of Leeds United vs Chelsea. Leeds United legend Howard Wilkinson has been welcomed back to Elland Road at half-time during the game against Chelsea for a special presentation. The man who led the Whites back into the top flight and then won the First Division, all the while drawing up the blueprints for the club's academy and future legacy, was given a standing ovation as he walked onto the pitch during the break to be inducted into the National Football Hall of Fame. The presentation took place in the centre circle as a tribute was paid to Wilkinson's impact on the club. The 82-year-old brought a laugh from the crowd, saying it felt 'embarrassing' to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He went on: "Leeds were so good to me, the fans were so good to me, supported me all the time I was here. I was here for all those years and never worked a day in my life. “I can't get over the f...

Fans who stay in the stadium bowl will see a club icon step out onto the hallowed turf Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter Leeds United are set to honour one of the club’s most iconic figures at half-time in tonight’s Premier League match against Chelsea. Howard Wilkinson will be formally inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame for his influence on the domestic game, both at United and further afar. Wilkinson remains the last English manager to win the top flight having lifted the title with Leeds in the 1991/92 season. His impact can be seen in the creation of the Thorp Arch academy while he also played a significant role in the establishment of St George’s Park in Burton-upon-Trent, the base for all national teams. At the interval of this evening’s game at Elland Road, a presentation will be conducted that sees the former England caretaker manager officially enter into the Hall of Fame. The club are meanwhile supporting a fan-led campaign to immortalise ...

By Stuart Rayner Daniel Farke praised Leeds United’s resilience to push Manchester City right until stoppage-time despite a terrible start on Saturday. Their run of defeats extended to four consecutive games, but that did not tell the full story of the 3-2 defeat. City won through Phil Foden's late goal after Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha brought them on level terms in the second half. That had looked extremely unlikely when Foden put City ahead after 59 seconds, and Joskvo Gvardiol doubled the lead 25 minutes into a predictably one-sided half. But a double personnel change by manager Farke and a shift in formation inspired an encouraging if ultimately fruitless response from his players. Asked what went through his mind after Foden’s opener, Fare replied: "I can't speak publicly about (what I was thinking) because I would be banned from football, because you're not allowed to swear. "It is sometimes like this, in football like in life. You th...