Leeds United Football Club - Blackwell Is A Man With A Plan
United boss Kevin Blackwell says Leeds will be strong challengers for promotion next season as he reflected on the progress of the last few months.
The manager has stuck to his first aim of making sure Leeds stabilise themselves in the Championship, and with that mission accomplished, everything between now and the end of the season is with the next campaign in mind.
Last week saw the arrival of striker Ian Moore from Burnley, the Whites making their move ahead of Sunderland and Sheffield United, and he looks like being just one of 'the building blocks' in Blackwell's blueprint for 2005/06.
"Signing Ian Moore is a signal of our intent," said Blackwell. "He is just one of four or five that I hope to bring to the club in the summer and they will show people that Leeds will be seriously going for it next season.
"I have drawn up a short-list of players who I believe will add to the quality we already have at this club and put us in a strong position.
"The difference next season will be that unlike this year where I have had to introduce dozens of players to the club all at once, we've had 26 debuts, there will be just four or five to worry about and the nucleus of the team will already be there."
Blackwell's early season argument that Leeds would get better towards the end of the campaign has proved true as they were transformed from relegation candidates to play-off hopefuls, although that chance now appears to have gone.
"There were so many changes at the start because we didn't know what our best combination was, we've had to experiment to find things out.
"Some things clearly weren't good enough but we added quality where it was needed with the likes of David Healy and Sean Gregan and the improvement has been clear.
"If you were to take our form since Christmas we would be second in the table. That's what we've got to build on next season, and if we can, then we'll be in a strong position to go up."
Meanwhile, Leeds reserves recent good run of form came to a crashing halt with a 3-0 defeat against Manchester City at the Atlantic Solutions Stadium on Tuesday evening.
The Whites second string went into the game on the back of a four match unbeaten run that helped them climb off the foot of the table, but they had no answer to a City side that included former United full-back Danny Mills in the side.
Sasa Illic was making his debut for United as he sets about trying to earn a contract past the end of the season, but things went bad from the 15th minute when Ishmael Miller got a vital touch on a free-kick to put the visitors ahead.
Ilic could do little about City's second on 62 minutes when Karl Bermingham struck from the edge of the box and then Bradley Wright-Phillips ghosted past the defence to wrap up a miserable night for Leeds.
Leeds United: Ilic, Edwards, McDaid, Rothery (Gardner 80), McStay, Parker, Gray, Woods, Corr (Howson 71), Smith (McKeown 90)
Subs not used: Wilberforce (GK), Stansfield
Manchester City: Weaver, Warrender, Collins, J D’Laryea, Richards, Mills, Croft (Laird 82), Ireland, Bermingham, B Wright-Phillip, Miller (Bennett 73) Subs not used: Matthewson (GK), Lee-Matthews, Williamson
United boss Kevin Blackwell says Leeds will be strong challengers for promotion next season as he reflected on the progress of the last few months.
The manager has stuck to his first aim of making sure Leeds stabilise themselves in the Championship, and with that mission accomplished, everything between now and the end of the season is with the next campaign in mind.
Last week saw the arrival of striker Ian Moore from Burnley, the Whites making their move ahead of Sunderland and Sheffield United, and he looks like being just one of 'the building blocks' in Blackwell's blueprint for 2005/06.
"Signing Ian Moore is a signal of our intent," said Blackwell. "He is just one of four or five that I hope to bring to the club in the summer and they will show people that Leeds will be seriously going for it next season.
"I have drawn up a short-list of players who I believe will add to the quality we already have at this club and put us in a strong position.
"The difference next season will be that unlike this year where I have had to introduce dozens of players to the club all at once, we've had 26 debuts, there will be just four or five to worry about and the nucleus of the team will already be there."
Blackwell's early season argument that Leeds would get better towards the end of the campaign has proved true as they were transformed from relegation candidates to play-off hopefuls, although that chance now appears to have gone.
"There were so many changes at the start because we didn't know what our best combination was, we've had to experiment to find things out.
"Some things clearly weren't good enough but we added quality where it was needed with the likes of David Healy and Sean Gregan and the improvement has been clear.
"If you were to take our form since Christmas we would be second in the table. That's what we've got to build on next season, and if we can, then we'll be in a strong position to go up."
Meanwhile, Leeds reserves recent good run of form came to a crashing halt with a 3-0 defeat against Manchester City at the Atlantic Solutions Stadium on Tuesday evening.
The Whites second string went into the game on the back of a four match unbeaten run that helped them climb off the foot of the table, but they had no answer to a City side that included former United full-back Danny Mills in the side.
Sasa Illic was making his debut for United as he sets about trying to earn a contract past the end of the season, but things went bad from the 15th minute when Ishmael Miller got a vital touch on a free-kick to put the visitors ahead.
Ilic could do little about City's second on 62 minutes when Karl Bermingham struck from the edge of the box and then Bradley Wright-Phillips ghosted past the defence to wrap up a miserable night for Leeds.
Leeds United: Ilic, Edwards, McDaid, Rothery (Gardner 80), McStay, Parker, Gray, Woods, Corr (Howson 71), Smith (McKeown 90)
Subs not used: Wilberforce (GK), Stansfield
Manchester City: Weaver, Warrender, Collins, J D’Laryea, Richards, Mills, Croft (Laird 82), Ireland, Bermingham, B Wright-Phillip, Miller (Bennett 73) Subs not used: Matthewson (GK), Lee-Matthews, Williamson