Mighty Leeds Weblog

Claret and blue legends Brian Little, Ian Taylor and John Gregory talk Mat Kendrick through Villa's glorious trophy win 26 years ago Imagine the scene. You're a Leeds United scout sent incognito to spy on Aston Villa's preparations ahead of the Coca Cola Cup final at Wembley Stadium. You've tracked down where Brian Little's class of 1996 are staying and, under the cover of darkness, book into the swanky Selsdon Park Hotel in south London. Up bright and early to peek at the opposition from behind a newspaper at the breakfast table, you then secretly follow them to the training pitches. Long before Marcelo Bielsa's binoculars became a thing at Elland Road, Leeds were already experimenting with espionage to get the lowdown on their rivals. Only, ahead of the League Cup final on March 24 1996 - a full quarter of a century ago today - their cloak and dagger ploy spectacularly backfired. "I remember we went to the training pitches at the hotel and we had ...

BY ROSS BELL Cast your mind back to the 1994 World Cup, what does it conjure up for you? For me I can see Diana Ross’ incredible penalty that exploded a goal, big Jack Charlton handing little bags of water to his Irish players on the sidelines, Alexi Lalas and that beard; and most of all, the exciting Swedish forward line of Martin Dahlin and Tomas Brolin. They lit up the competition with an excellent partnership that looked to set them both on the road to fantastic careers at the very top level. Whilst Dahlin would score 50 in 106 games for Borussia Mönchengladbach, his career would gradually slide from relevance with a move to Blackburn Rovers not really working out. His partner in crime, however, would be the subject of a big money move to Leeds United. On November 7th 1995, just over a year after starring in a World Cup semi-final against eventual champions Brazil, Tomas Brolin would reject moves to three Italian clubs to join Leeds United in a club record £4.5million deal – ...

Nestor Watach “Coming away from this match I found myself muttering about how shit and boring and lucky Leeds had been,” is how an Arsenal fansite writer described the experience of losing 1-0 at home to Leeds United in February 1997. “We all knew as soon as George Graham left Highbury that he’d be back to out-Arsenal us like this one day.” Arsene Wenger had been appointed as Arsenal’s new manager three months prior and while that writer’s belief was early evidence of the aesthetic, right-way-to-play doctrine that would come to define the Gunners in their prime years, the Frenchman’s revolution was not yet underway: Patrick Vieira was the only non-British or Irish player in their XI as they succumbed to FA Cup elimination to Leeds. Yet there remains an acknowledgement of what Arsenal once were. After all, their fans ironically readopted ‘Boring, boring Arsenal’ and would proudly chant ‘One-nil to the Arsenal’ as Graham delivered two league titles and an FA Cup. They were master...

Nestor Watach Not every footballer gets a chance to return to their hometown club. Brian Deane had to forge his own path, away from Leeds, the city he was born and raised in. He represented Yorkshire Amateurs as a teenager, but broke his leg, and only after a long spell of rehabilitation did he get his break on trial at Doncaster Rovers. Still studying part-time at Leeds City College, Deane broke through at Doncaster, and went on to catch the eye on the third tier – resulting in Sheffield United signing him for £25,000 in 1988. The forward scored 30 goals in his debut season with Blades, firing them to promotion back to the second tier, and from there his burgeoning career ran parallel to Leeds’ ascent. Twenty-four goals followed in Deane’s second season at Bramall Lane, resulting in a second successive promotion. Dave Bassett’s Blades finished second, going up to the top flight alongside champions Leeds. While Leeds went on to win the title under Howard Wilkinson, Deane ...

SAFE HANDS Written by Rob Conlon Signing Nigel Martyn for Leeds United in 1996 fit perfectly with Howard Wilkinson’s ten-year plan. Wilkinson had made sure Leeds were not left behind by the looming breakaway of the Premier League by winning promotion in 1990, and the club’s investment in the academy and youth development was beginning to bear fruit. Ian Harte was already in the first team, and by the end of the 1996/97 season, Paul Robinson, Jonathan Woodgate, Stephen McPhail and Harry Kewell were lifting the FA Youth Cup, with Alan Smith not far behind. To aid the transition, in came Martyn, the most expensive goalkeeper in Britain, alongside Lee Bowyer, the most expensive teenager. The problem was that Wilkinson had undermined his own plan by making Leeds champions of England six years ahead of schedule, meaning fans and directors were no longer feeling quite so patient about finishing 17th, 5th (twice) and 13th after winning the title. Nigel Martyn spoke to us for an episode...