Phil Hay: New players are required, but they must be right ones for Leeds United
YEP 28/9/13
Leeds United need goals. And if their squad as it stands can’t provide them, the alternative is pretty obvious.
The Football League created the emergency loan market for this eventuality and its members are lucky that FIFA hasn’t forced the window shut. It means a team in Barnsley’s predicament can pinch a fully-capped England goalkeeper from Stoke and a club like Leeds need not accept that a group of players with seven league goals between them is tough luck.
United’s board reacted to Saturday’s defeat to Burnley by offering Brian McDermott a signing. Their attitude, perhaps in view of Leeds’ finishing, was that a new striker might be a good idea. But there are always caveats in these situations; limits and restrictions on who can be signed.
What became apparent as the week wore on was that McDermott didn’t like his options. Between the players who are available and those he can afford with United’s budget, he patently sees no value. Tuesday’s pre-Newcastle press conference was interesting, a case of McDermott marking his territory. I’ll take a signing I want, McDermott said, but I won’t take a signing to keep people happy.
McDermott ought not to be excessively precious about which players could make his life easier but the best managers rule by small committees and often rule alone. He was right to argue that any forward brought in now would have to hit Leeds with a bang.
You’ll find forwards on the fringes of every Premier League club but another ‘goalscorer’ who struggles to score goals does nothing for McDermott. One blank game and the debate begins again. So his message to United seemed plain enough – fund the right sort of striker for the right length of time and I’ll have him. Otherwise, the squad stays the same. Your call.
Tuesday night took McDermott to Hull City’s League Cup tie against Huddersfield Town, seemingly to watch Matty Fryatt. Reports of the match described Fryatt as rusty, off the pace, desperate for games. Sheffield Wednesday took him for a month yesterday and good luck to them but Leeds do not need to get involved in that sort of deal. What they want is a fit, sharp, prolific poacher.
And of course they need width. One goalscorer would not tick every empty box. The loss to Burnley and the spate of opportunities missed showed that United can tee up chances without full-blown wingers but it is still true that wingers would offer flexibility and variety in their formation and tactics. Work on that area needs to happen. But again, it should not involve cutting corners.
Over the weekend Leeds were heavily linked with David Bentley, the former Blackburn Rovers winger who has the moniker of once costing £17million. Bury once won the FA Cup. It’s safe to say that Bentley was more interested in Leeds than McDermott was in him but the story caused that nasty echo of opportunistic transfers negotiated by United in days gone by.
Bentley is only 29, many years from the usual retirement age, but he has been without a club since July. Players are usually without a club for a reason. He played against Leeds for Blackburn last season and might as well not have bothered. You saw no spark there, no drive or enthusiasm. He is doubtless as confused about the roadmap of his career as anyone else. It shouldn’t have come to this.
Yet Leeds need wide players, which Bentley is, and he’s free to sign. The theory goes that you end up with a £17million asset on your hands and the chance to make him right. But an acquisition like that would be contrary to everything that McDermott has preached at Elland Road. It is almost the last acquisition you’d ever expect him to make.
When he talks about potential transfers, McDermott talks about hunger, personality and attitude. He talks of looking into players’ eyes and analysing the character staring back at him. He also places importance on making signings which, in his words, add value to the squad and offer Leeds something for “today and tomorrow”. Where is Bentley in that criteria? Nowhere.
I remember Leeds signing Amdy Faye in the early weeks of Simon Grayson’s last season. “He was a good player at Stoke,” Grayson said. Sadly, he wasn’t at Stoke any more and no-one else seemed to care. Faye played eight times and left before long.
Leeds have built on sand before and suffered because of it and McDermott is doing them a favour by keeping his standards high. But no-one should pretend that he is choosing to go forward without a full deck of cards. He’s playing manager with the hand he’s been dealt.
Leeds United need goals. And if their squad as it stands can’t provide them, the alternative is pretty obvious.
The Football League created the emergency loan market for this eventuality and its members are lucky that FIFA hasn’t forced the window shut. It means a team in Barnsley’s predicament can pinch a fully-capped England goalkeeper from Stoke and a club like Leeds need not accept that a group of players with seven league goals between them is tough luck.
United’s board reacted to Saturday’s defeat to Burnley by offering Brian McDermott a signing. Their attitude, perhaps in view of Leeds’ finishing, was that a new striker might be a good idea. But there are always caveats in these situations; limits and restrictions on who can be signed.
What became apparent as the week wore on was that McDermott didn’t like his options. Between the players who are available and those he can afford with United’s budget, he patently sees no value. Tuesday’s pre-Newcastle press conference was interesting, a case of McDermott marking his territory. I’ll take a signing I want, McDermott said, but I won’t take a signing to keep people happy.
McDermott ought not to be excessively precious about which players could make his life easier but the best managers rule by small committees and often rule alone. He was right to argue that any forward brought in now would have to hit Leeds with a bang.
You’ll find forwards on the fringes of every Premier League club but another ‘goalscorer’ who struggles to score goals does nothing for McDermott. One blank game and the debate begins again. So his message to United seemed plain enough – fund the right sort of striker for the right length of time and I’ll have him. Otherwise, the squad stays the same. Your call.
Tuesday night took McDermott to Hull City’s League Cup tie against Huddersfield Town, seemingly to watch Matty Fryatt. Reports of the match described Fryatt as rusty, off the pace, desperate for games. Sheffield Wednesday took him for a month yesterday and good luck to them but Leeds do not need to get involved in that sort of deal. What they want is a fit, sharp, prolific poacher.
And of course they need width. One goalscorer would not tick every empty box. The loss to Burnley and the spate of opportunities missed showed that United can tee up chances without full-blown wingers but it is still true that wingers would offer flexibility and variety in their formation and tactics. Work on that area needs to happen. But again, it should not involve cutting corners.
Over the weekend Leeds were heavily linked with David Bentley, the former Blackburn Rovers winger who has the moniker of once costing £17million. Bury once won the FA Cup. It’s safe to say that Bentley was more interested in Leeds than McDermott was in him but the story caused that nasty echo of opportunistic transfers negotiated by United in days gone by.
Bentley is only 29, many years from the usual retirement age, but he has been without a club since July. Players are usually without a club for a reason. He played against Leeds for Blackburn last season and might as well not have bothered. You saw no spark there, no drive or enthusiasm. He is doubtless as confused about the roadmap of his career as anyone else. It shouldn’t have come to this.
Yet Leeds need wide players, which Bentley is, and he’s free to sign. The theory goes that you end up with a £17million asset on your hands and the chance to make him right. But an acquisition like that would be contrary to everything that McDermott has preached at Elland Road. It is almost the last acquisition you’d ever expect him to make.
When he talks about potential transfers, McDermott talks about hunger, personality and attitude. He talks of looking into players’ eyes and analysing the character staring back at him. He also places importance on making signings which, in his words, add value to the squad and offer Leeds something for “today and tomorrow”. Where is Bentley in that criteria? Nowhere.
I remember Leeds signing Amdy Faye in the early weeks of Simon Grayson’s last season. “He was a good player at Stoke,” Grayson said. Sadly, he wasn’t at Stoke any more and no-one else seemed to care. Faye played eight times and left before long.
Leeds have built on sand before and suffered because of it and McDermott is doing them a favour by keeping his standards high. But no-one should pretend that he is choosing to go forward without a full deck of cards. He’s playing manager with the hand he’s been dealt.