Mighty Leeds Weblog

Here is the City 24/12/14 Billy Hawkins The Whites have suffered a season of confusion and uncertainty, with managerial changes and ownership problems evolving into an impending transfer embargo. Having started the season with Dave Hockaday in charge, before moving through Neil Redfearn as a caretaker manager, and Darko Milanic for a short spell, the Yorkshire-based club have finally found some stability under Redfearn in his first full-time role as head coach of the Whites. Results are still not overly forthcoming - with no win in three games - and Leeds sit in 18th place, just five points off the final relegation place. A chance of securing a play-off place is looking increasingly distant with each passing week - with a 14 point gap now opened up on 6th place Watford - and it looks as if the rest of this season will be used to continue stabilising the club before building ahead of a promising season next year. Redfearn has done much to work on a number of the problems surroundi...

Yorkshire Evening Post 23/12/14 by Phil Hay Massimo Cellino’s disqualification as owner of Leeds has been delayed until the end of his appeal, scheduled for January 15. The League announced yesterday (Dec 23) that Cellino’s appeal hearing would be staged next month and confirmed that it had agreed to postpone punishment of him until after a verdict was returned. The governing body will allow Cellino to remain as a Leeds director while his appeal is being considered by its Professional Conduct Committee (PCC), despite initially ordering him to resign before the end of this month. Cellino was disqualified from owning United on December 1 due to a tax conviction imposed on him by a court in Cagliari. The 58-year-old is challenging the decision but the Football League informed him at the outset that he was required to quit the board at Elland Road within 28 days, a deadline which fell on Monday of next week. Cellino was due to regain control of Leeds on March 18, 2015, the date on w...

Guardian 22/12/14 Louise Taylor Leeds United’s Giuseppe Bellusci will contest a misconduct charge from the Football Association following allegations that the central defender directed a racist comment towards the Norwich City striker Cameron Jerome. The incident occurred during a 1-1 Championship draw at Carrow Road in October and involved Jerome making a complaint to the referee, Mark Clattenburg, in the wake of a first half confrontation between the two players. Jerome told Clattenburg that he had been verbally abused by the 25-year-old Italian and the referee temporarily stopped the game before exchanging words with both dugouts. After the match, Neil Adams, the Norwich manager, brought the issue into the public domain. “Cameron has alleged that he was the subject of a racist comment,” he said. “Mark Clattenberg spoke to Cameron because of the way he had reacted. He spoke to the players at half-time with a representative from each club. Bellusci is the player who was alleged ...

leedsunited.com 22/12/14 Head coach Neil Redfearn hailed the importance of Lewis Cook to his side after another impressive display from the 17-year-old midfielder. Cook has been a regular fixture in a youthful-looking United midfield ever since Redfearn handed him a first Championship start in August’s home win over Bolton. The Academy product, who now has 21 first-team appearances to his name, stood out again during Saturday’s 1-1 draw away to Nottingham Forest. "Lewis Cook, 17-years-old, he was the best player on the pitch by a mile," said Redfearn. "There were some good signs for us on Saturday. "He’s one of ours and he wants to play for Leeds United, that’s all he’s known. "He’s a massive influence on us and how we play. Even at the tender age of 17, there’s a maturity about him. "He’s got this strength in character and he’s getting better and better." Redfearn was also full of praise for goalkeeper Marco Silvestri, who pulled off a number...

Yorkshire Post 22/12/14 NEVER mind Strictly for Saturday night viewing, it was more the Ex-Factor at the City Ground. The one basking in the limelight was Billy Sharp, who netted against one of his former clubs, although he did have to share star billing with team-mates Lewis Cook and Marco Silvestri. Some choice contributions from the officials also drew top marks from Leeds supporters, entitled to reflect on things going their way on the road for once. Sharp was on hand to cancel out Matty Fryatt’s opener just before the break, with the striker, making his first start since September 16, assuming penalty-taking duties after Danny Fox brought down Sam Byram in the 54th minute. Sharp, who spent the 2012-13 season on loan at Forest, blasted the ball past Karl Darlow, and there was more drama to come  It arrived just after the hour mark when Fryatt, after having a 21st-minute ‘goal’ ruled out for offside when replays showed he was played onside by Byram, was again forced to rue...

Yorkshire Evening Post 22/12/14 by Phil Hay Billy Sharp claimed his first goal since August to earn Leeds United a point at Nottingham Forest and claimed he and his team-mates should take confidence from a rare and battling point away from home. Sharp’s 54th-minute penalty – his first effort for Leeds since scoring on his debut against Middlesbrough four months ago – secured a 1-1 draw in Nottingham on Saturday, putting more ground between Leeds and the Championship’s bottom three. United fought back from a Matty Fryatt strike in first-half injury-time to avert an 11th league defeat of the season, surviving two further finishes from Fryatt which were controversially disallowed for offside. Leeds’ woeful away form – showing six points from 11 games – led to a rethink by head coach Neil Redfearn, who recalled Sharp in place of Souleymane Doukara at the City Ground and initially used a 4-3-3 formation in place of his usual midfield diamond. Sharp said: “I was playing a bit wider tha...

Yorkshire Evening Post 22/12/14 by Phil Hay Neil Redfearn described Lewis Cook as the “best player on the pitch by a mile” after a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest and warned rival clubs that Leeds United would not welcome any bids for the 17-year-old when the January transfer window opens. Cook’s mature performance was the stand-out display in a tight game at the City Ground on Saturday and Redfearn believes the teenager is set for a long-term career at Elland Road, saying: “He’s a Leeds lad and he wants to play for this club.” The England youth international – part of the international squad who won the European Under-17 Championship earlier this year – is halfway through his first season as a senior player at United and has consistently met the standards of the Championship. His contribution at Forest helped Leeds ride their luck and claim a precious point away from home on an evening when Forest saw two legitimate goals from striker Matty Fryatt ruled out for offside. Cook, who ...

Yorkshire Evening Post 21/12/14 by Phil Hay It’s been creeping up quietly but Leeds United’s game against Wigan Athletic on Boxing Day is shaping up to be their most consequential for a while. Win it and the club will have clear water to swim in. Lose it and their position in the Championship will look more than a little dicey. Leeds lightened the mood in the week before Christmas with a draw away to Nottingham Forest, and a precious draw at that, but their season is crying out for a rise in the win-rate. On Saturday they showed again that they have the wit to take points off useful teams in the Championship. The question in the second half of the season will be how many and how often. Billy Sharp’s 54th-minute penalty forced a 1-1 draw at the City Ground and the scoreline was all Leeds wanted to think about. Forest complained about the tackle leading to Sharp’s goal and two Matty Fryatt efforts disallowed for offside but United have had bad luck when they’ve had any this season. W...

Yorkshire Evening Post 20/12/14 NEIL REDFEARN hailed a dogged performance from his Leeds United side, who started to put several painful recent episodes on the road behind them with a gritty point in a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest. Leeds battled back from a 1-0 interval deficit to claim a share of the spoils in front of the TV cameras after Billy Sharp, playing against one of his former clubs, netted a 54th-minute penalty in his first start since September 16. United started the game in 20th position in the Championship and suffered a further blow moments before the break when Matty Fryatt latched onto Michael Mancienne’s header to net from close range. It was another poor concession from Leeds, but to their credit, Redfearn’s side manufactured a leveller in the second half with Roger East showing no hesitation in pointing to the spot after Danny Fox brought down Sam Byram. Sharp blasted home the penalty, just his second goal since joining Leeds. That said, Leeds were indebted t...

Yorkshire Post 20/12/14 BILLY SHARP’S second goal of the season ensured Leeds United secured a welcome point on their travels at the City Ground, ending a run of three successive Championship defeats on the road. Sharp, taking the field against a side who he played for on loan throughout the 2012-13 campaign, fired home from the spot nine minutes after the interval after Sam Byram was felled by Danny Fox to cancel out Matty Fryatt’s opener moments before the break. It ensured Leeds took something tangible home from an away game for the first time since drawing 1-1 at Norwich on October 21, although they were indebted to two big pieces of fortune during proceedings in the East Midlands. Both revolved around goalscorer Fryatt, denied by a linesman’s flag on 21 minutes and shortly after the hour mark, with replays seeming to show that both efforts should have been given. Both decisions provided plenty of talking points following the final whistle - with the officials booed off by dis...

Mail 20/12/14 Matty Fryatt had two goals ruled out in controversial fashion as Nottingham Forest were denied a Sky Bet Championship victory over Leeds at the City Ground. The Reds striker had given Stuart Pearce's side the lead in first-half injury-time - but either side of that he had two efforts ruled out for offside, with television replays suggesting they should have stood. And Neil Redfearn's side secured a 1-1 draw as former Forest player Billy Sharp netted emphatically from the spot in the 54th minute, after Sam Byram had been tripped by Danny Fox. Leeds goalkeeper Marco Silvestri produced a string of outstanding saves to hold Forest at bay as the home side pushed for a winner. The two major incidents of the first half both involved Fryatt prodding home from close range. In the 22nd minute, the striker found the back of the net from close range, when he deflected a Michail Antonio cross-shot beyond keeper Silvestri - only to see his effort ruled out for offside. It...

Yorkshire Evening Post 20/12/14 by Phil Hay Neil Redfearn is confident that Leeds United will sign new players next month, with the club optimistic about their chances of securing a deal for Sassuolo striker Leonardo Pavoletti. Redfearn said he and owner Massimo Cellino had held talks about their plans for the January window and discussed ways of working around the transfer embargo imposed on the club at the start of this week. Leeds will be banned from paying transfer or loans fees next month – their punishment for breaking Financial Fair Play regulations – but loopholes in the Football League’s rules should allow them to sign players for a maximum of £600,000 a year in salary costs. Pavoletti, 26, would fit into that bracket and is on United’s radar again after the club failed with an attempt to recruit him before the end of the summer window. Leeds were in talks with Sassuolo – a club from whom they signed midfielder Tommaso Bianchi in July – on the night of September 1 but co...

Yorkshire Post 19/12/14 NEIL REDFEARN has urged Leeds United’s squad to believe in themselves and focus on the “bigger picture” when they go in search of a sorely-needed away win at Nottingham Forest tomorrow. The club’s head coach held his hands up to a bad fortnight in which Leeds were heavily beaten at Ipswich Town and edged out by a single goal at home to Fulham but he insisted again his side had shown steady improvement since his full-time appointment eight weeks ago. United fell to 19th in the Championship after Fulham’s 1-0 win at Elland Road last weekend and the five-point gap between Redfearn’s squad and the bottom three could shrink ahead of their game tomorrow with Leeds due to kick-off a televised fixture at the City Ground at 5.15pm. Redfearn is preparing to make changes to his starting line-up in response to the club’s last two results and a poor run of away form which has hampered their league position throughout the season. United’s win at Championship leaders Bour...

Yorkshire Evening Post 19/12/14 A former manager of Leeds United was once heard to say that an assistant should be as loyal as his wife. It helps to have someone watching your back, without the fear that they might stick a knife in it. In Steve Thompson, Neil Redfearn has an assistant he can trust. The two men go back a very long way, to a time when they were teenagers chasing playing careers at the same English club. That they are close friends still, 30 years later, says a lot in an industry which tests and breaks the best of relationships. Thompson’s appointment as United’s number two, confirmed by the club yesterday afternoon, felt almost as long in the making. Redfearn asked Leeds to tie him down immediately after his own appointment as head coach on November 1 and he has worked a hard and lonely shift in the weeks since then. “I like putting out cones,” Redfearn joked last month but the lack of support for him was glaring, at a stage where the club’s season was listing. Wit...

Yorkshire Evening Post 18/12/14 by Lee Sobot NEW assistant coach Steve Thompson described Leeds United as the biggest sleeping giant in football as he outlined a plan for Whites players to make “life-changing money” with elevation to the Premier League. Former Huddersfield Town first team coach Thompson was finally confirmed as Neil Redfearn’s assistant coach on Thursday, ending weeks of speculation in time for Saturday’s trip to Nottingham Forest. And while Leeds sit only 19th in the Championship table and just five points off the drop zone - Thompson is in no doubt whatsoever as to where the Whites belong. Thompson, 50, knows United have no divine right to dine back at English football’s top table and the new Whites assistant said it was important to set “realistic targets”, especially for a young side. Yet there is no denying where Thompson sees Leeds United’s long term future with the former midfielder saying he is honoured to become the club’s new assistant, desperately hopi...

Leeds United are delighted to confirm the appointment of Steve Thompson as the club’s new assistant head coach. Steve joins Neil Redfearn’s backroom staff with immediate effect after signing a contract until the end of the season, with the option of a further year. He arrives at Elland Road from Huddersfield Town, where he held the position of first-team coach under Chris Powell after initially assisting Mark Robins earlier this season. Steve will be assisting on all first team matters, with his first game in the United dug-out coming away to Nottingham Forest on Saturday. Steve and Neil have known each other for over 30 years, having both started their professional careers together at Bolton Wanderers back in 1982. The 50-year-old brings a wealth of experience having made over 650 senior appearances in a 20-year playing career before beginning his coaching career in 2005 with Blackpool as Head of the Youth Department. He then worked as first-team coach under former United boss S...

Yorkshire Evening Post 18/12/14 by Phil Hay Head coach Neil Redfearn reckons now is the time for leeds to mix things up a bit in terms of team selections. Phil Hay reports. Neil Redfearn, like most coaches, knows his preferred starting line-up but the bout of cramp suffered by Stephen Warnock last weekend reminded Leeds United’s head coach that squads make seasons. Warnock is the club’s most dependable player, an established left-back with no better alternative, and he blamed his substitution during Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Fulham on illness suffered during the game. Redfearn wondered if Leeds’ relentless use of Warnock was actually taking its toll. The 33-year-old is not the only fixture in United’s team. Since Redfearn’s appointment on November 1, the changes to his side have been fleeting and usually enforced. Redfearn had stability on his mind when in charge of a club which was badly out of form; a settled line-up and points on the board. Seven games on he is well aware that ...

Yorkshire Post 18/12/14 LEEDS UNITED have officially unveiled Steve Thompson as their new assistant coach today, ending Neil Redfearn’s long wait for a key addition to his backroom staff. Leeds and Thompson had been in direct talks since Huddersfield Town revealed last week that they were willing to allow their first-team coach to move to Elland Road for no compensation. The 50-year-old – formerly a team-mate of Redfearn’s at Bolton Wanderers – finalised his appointment on Thursday in time to join United’s boss in the dug-out for Saturday’s game at Nottingham Forest. His contract with Leeds runs to the end of the season and includes the option of a second year, in line with Redfearn’s own deal as head coach. Redfearn has been looking to add Thompson to his coaching team since taking charge of United’s senior squad from Darko Milanic at the start of November. Huddersfield initially asked Leeds for compensation but relented after United owner Massimo Cellino refused to meet their d...

Yorkshire Evening Post 17/12/14 There is room at Leeds United for four new signings next month – and more again if the club can cut certain players from their squad – but in the circumstances they would settle for two. Back when the summer transfer window closed, two signings in January was more than Leeds expected to make. The club were resigned to an embargo as punishment for losses of £23m last season and only in the past six weeks did it become clear that the Football League’s regulations are full of holes. Leeds have been assessing the transfer market since the latter stages of October, the point at which their owner, Massimo Cellino, began to realise that the League’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) penalty was not an embargo in the strictest sense. There are limits to the amount of money Leeds can spend and the number of players they can recruit but they are permitted to maintain a squad of 24 players who are either over 21 or have made five competitive appearances for the club. T...

Yorkshire Evening Post 17/12/14 Leeds United and the Football League are likely to agree a schedule for Massimo Cellino’s appeal against his ownership disqualification before the end of this week. The club and the governing body are working to finalise a timeframe for Cellino’s hearing after United’s owner lodged an appeal a few hours before the deadline set for him to contest the ban. Cellino was disqualified by the Football League 10 days ago and barred from acting as owner or director of Leeds until March of next year due to tax conviction imposed on him in Italy. The 58-year-old was found guilty of evading VAT owed on a private yacht nine months ago, a conviction which the Football League believes is in breach of its Owners and Directors Test. Cellino was given 14 days to accept the ban or confirm his intention to fight it and the Football League received an appeal from his legal team shortly before the cut-off point on Monday night. The League had initially hoped to see any a...

Here is the City 16/12/14 Lewis Doe Leeds United boss Neil Redfearn has explained when he feels fans will start seeing the best football from his team. Redfearn believes that his side will start producing good football once they have moved up the Championship and into a good position, which allows them to look forwards rather than backwards. “The ideal scenario to really bed things down is to be in a position in the league where you can relax into games and go and play good football,” he told the Leeds website. “We’re still in a position where we’re looking over our shoulders all the time.” One of the problems for Leeds has been consistency in all aspects. It’s been a problem for the side to bed in under a new manager, with Redfearn’s permanent appointment the fourth change the players had been forced to endure this season. There’s been a lack of consistency from a playing point of view with positive performances such as the win against Derby, mixed in with disappointing results ...

Football League World 16/12/14 BY SAM ROURKE FLW understands that Leeds United are to let midfielder Rudy Austin leave in the January transfer window. The 29-year-old central midfielder has found playing time hard to get under manager Neil Redfearn, and according to FLW sources, the Yorkshire club are set to let the Jamaican leave in January. As reported on FLW earlier this month, Championship strugglers Brighton and Hove Albion are interested in the combative midfielder, and are considering making a January bid for the Leeds player. However, it is uncertain who will be in charge of the Seagulls come the start of the January transfer window, with current boss Sami Hyypia on the brink of getting the sack. Leeds United boss Neil Redfearn has introduced an influx of youth into his starting eleven, subsequently meaning Austin has been sidelined more often than not. The Jamaican international has made 15 appearances for the Whites this season, scoring once, but has recently fallen ou...

Yorkshire Evening Post 16/12/14 by Phil Hay Leeds United have narrowly missed out on a January transfer pot of £250,000 - just 24 hours after being hit with a Football League embargo. United were short-listed for the Sky Bet-sponsored prize despite learning yesterday that they would receive a January embargo as punishment for a financial loss of £23m in the 2013-14 season. But in an ironic development this afternoon, the £250,000 prize went to Nottingham Forest - one of three Championship clubs who breached Financial Fair Play rules and will have their transfers heavily restricted next month. Regulations governing Football League embargoes contain major loopholes which will potentially allow Leeds and Forest to sign new players regardless. Neither club will be allowed to pay transfer or loans fees in January but the Football League has confirmed that the £250,000 transfer pot can be spent on players’ wages.

Guardian 16/12/14 James Riach Massimo Cellino has appealed against the Football League’s decision to disqualify him as owner of Leeds United under the organisation’s owners’ and directors’ test. Cellino, who took control of Leeds in April following a protracted appeal against the League’s initial attempt to block his purchase, was disqualified earlier in the month after a conviction for evading import duty on a yacht was deemed a “dishonest” offence. The Italian, whose company Eleonora Sport owns a 75% shareholding in Leeds after buying a majority stake from the previous owners, Gulf Finance House Capital, had two weeks to appeal against the decision and formal representations were made to the League on Monday evening. Cellino’s legal team have consistently argued that the tax evasion case, for which the former Cagliari owner was fined €600,000 (£477,000) for failing to pay €390,000 import duty on his boat the Nelie, is a first-grade conviction in Italy and should not be regarded ...

Sabotage Times 15/12/14 by Paul Sherman Losing at home to a Fulham team with the 19th worst away record in the Championship brought Leeds United’s current plight into stark contrast and begged the question, is the club broken irreparably? 10,000 more fans were at Elland Road to witness the debacle than watched Boro beat Derby to go top of the table. If the team were as passionate and committed as the support we’d be top of the league by a country mile. We played some nice football again but with no cutting edge, no bite and a soft centre of Quality Street proportions in defence. Following last week’s capitulation at Ipswich we can only imagine the Forest forwards salivating at the prospect of running amok against us live on telly next week. The club is perfectly balanced – shot to hell both on and off the field, with little hope of improvement. A likely transfer embargo awaits in January, thanks to the gross incompetence, negligence and greed of GFH, the minority shareholders wit...

Mail 15/12/14 The Championship trio will be unable to sign players from January 1 2015 All three have been punished for breaking Financial Fair Play rules However the clubs can still make signings if certain criteria are met They can have their embargoes lifted at the end of the season if they prove they have stayed within the maximum deviation of £6million By MARTYN ZIEGLER, PRESS ASSOCIATION Blackburn, Leeds and Nottingham Forest will all have a transfer ban for the January window after breaching the Football League's financial fair play (FFP) rules. The League announced that the three clubs all incurred financial losses more than the £8million permitted during last season. Submissions from QPR, Leicester and Burnley - who were all promoted to the Premier League - plus the three clubs relegated last season will now be considered by the Football League. A statement said: 'An initial analysis of FFP submissions from the current 24 Championship clubs has indicated that ...

Yorkshire Evening Post 13/12/14 LEEDS UNITED manager Neil Redfearn was left to bemoan a lack of cutting edge in the final third as his side frustratingly went down 1-0 to Fulham at Elland Road. It was a day when it didn’t happen in the final third for Leeds, who suffered their second successive defeat following last weekend’s 4-1 loss at Ipswich. Redfearn felt several of his players looked tired and he admits that he will consider freshening up his side ahead of the festive programme. The only goal of the game arrived on the hour when Hugo Rodallega converted from close range. On the result and performance, Redfearn, who admitted that he was unhappy that Rudy Austin pulled out just before kick-off with an ankle injury after he was named on the bench, said: “It is disappointing. I thought we lacked conviction like in previous home games, which have been good and we have looked dangerous in front of goal and had a cutting edge. “But today, we huffed and puffed a bit, without having...

Yorkshire Evening Post 13/12/14 Neil Redfearn is ready to change Leeds United’s approach to away games in a bid to rectify their poor run of form – but the club’s head coach says he will not give up on his commitment to building a “passing side”. Redfearn admitted that United’s failure to pick up points away from home this season was demanding a rethink of his strategy and the 49-year-old thinks further additions to his squad are necessary to deliver more consistency. Leeds suffered their seventh away defeat of the Championship term at Ipswich Town last weekend, losing 4-1 just seven days after a rousing win at home to league leaders Derby County, and Redfearn said the result had highlighted the need to “play a little differently” on the road. Most of United’s points this season have been collected at Elland Road and United have not been beaten at home during Redfearn’s spell as full-time head coach or his four-game stint as caretaker earlier in the year. Leeds’ squad has undergon...

Yorkshire Evening Post 13/12/14 Leeds United will be hit by a transfer embargo – but it may not be an outright ban on signing players during the upcoming January transfer window. Nothing at Leeds United is ever black or white. Massimo Cellino is proof of that. Will he sidestep his Football League ban or will this disqualification stick? Is he here for the foreseeable or is the club on the road to another sale? Next month’s transfer embargo is equally devoid of clarity. It’s coming – without question it’s coming – but the belief at Elland Road is that the January window will not be an entirely closed shop. It will not be a free market either but the scope for new signings could exist, in a certain fashion and at a certain price. There’s a caveat to any conjecture about squad-building, forward planning or future objectives: the glaring possibility that Cellino will not escape the corner he is in. Earlier this week he made it clear that he is prepared to resign from United’s board w...