Mighty Leeds Weblog

Yorkshire Evening Post 29/11/14 by Phil Hay Leeds United head coach Neil Redfearn plans to pin his colours to Adryan and give him free rein this season, admitting the Brazilian’s flair will be central to the club’s results. Redfearn highlighted the increasing influence of Adryan at Elland Road and said the 20-year-old deserved licence to attack at will in the Championship after his recent performances. Adryan’s impact has increased gradually since a belated debut away at Rotherham United last month and he turned in his most convincing display yet during a narrow defeat at Blackburn Rovers seven days ago. The midfielder took more than a month to fight his way into the first team following his move to Leeds on a season-long loan from Flamengo but he has established himself over the past six weeks and will start for the sixth game running at home to Derby County today. Redfearn, who is using Adryan behind a frontline of strikers Mirco Antenucci and Souleymane Doukara, said: “He’s mo...

by Phil Hay Gulf finance house and David Haigh should leave Leeds United out of their very public squabble says YEP chief football writer Phil Hay. Leeds United’s accounts for the 2013-14 season go to the Football League next week. They might actually be in the mail by now, ready for Monday’s deadline. Analysis of 12 months in the hands of Gulf Finance House will demand a long drink and a comfy seat. Compiling them must have required Valium. Business accounts are notorious for their lack of specific detail but given that the events of the last financial year fall squarely on GFH’s head, these figures might be more explicit than most. How much we see and when we see it depends on the club – Companies House don’t publish the accounts until the end of March – but at some stage the books will open. If the numbers and the financial management exonerates GFH then we’ll take it back. We had them all wrong. They used to tell us that we had them all wrong, the Bahraini bank and David Haigh...

leedsunited.com 28/11/14 United’s top scorer Souleymane Doukara wants to add even more goals to his game as he becomes more confident on the pitch. To date the frontman has netted seven times for United – five times in the league and twice in the Capital One Cup – and he says that goals give him confidence on a matchday. “When you score goals you gain confidence,” said Souleymane. “You know your partner and they know you. “I want to score in every game. “English football is my football. I love all the stadiums in the England and when I get onto the pitch I want to score and win the game . I want to play well. “This is a hard league. You have to run and work hard to earn the game. “It is physical and it’s not easy for new players to come into the Championship. I enjoy the physical side of the game, this is not a problem for me.” The striker was among 15 new arrivals in the summer and he has praised some of the fellow new signings. “We have a positive squad,” added Doukara. “We...

leedsunited.com 28/11/14 Head coach Neil Redfearn wants his side to "play with confidence and enjoy the occasion" as they prepare for the visit of league leaders Derby County to Elland Road. The Rams currently sit three points clear at the top of the Championship and have won their last three games on the bounce, while United’s form remains a concern with just one win from the last 10. But Redfearn is encouraging his side to relish the challenge and believes the home advantage could play its part after enjoying victory last time out at Elland Road against Blackpool. "I think they’ve had a fantastic season and it’s a great game for us," said Redfearn. "Everybody will expect them to come and get a result against us but I think we’re in this position now where we’re an unknown quantity for teams . "I think we’re playing well. The last three performances, in general, have been good. "We like to play at home, you can see that. We’ve had most of our...

Yorkshire Evening Post 28/11/14 by Phil Hay Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy has welcomed the arrival of Noel Hunt on loan from Leeds United – and then accused Leeds owner Massimo Cellino of damaging Hunt’s career with false claims about the striker’s wages. Hunt joined Ipswich on an emergency loan yesterday, securing a move to a side that is fourth in the Championship despite making only two appearances this season and failing to score a first-team goal in 18 months at Leeds. McCarthy said he had signed a “very good Championship player” and suggested Hunt’s prospects at Elland Road had been ruined by Cellino’s claim that the 31-year-old was earning £25,000 a week. The allegation was made in a telephone conversation held with Cellino and recorded without his knowledge prior to his takeover of Leeds in April. Hunt’s weekly wage at United is substantially less than the figure quoted by Cellino. The Italian is thought to have been referring to Jimmy Kebe, the winger on loan with Le...

Yorkshire Evening Post 28/11/14 by Phil Hay Leeds United goalkeeper Marco Silvestri will retain his starting place against league leaders Derby County after a glowing vote of confidence from head coach Neil Redfearn. Redfearn rallied behind Silvestri after his recent mistakes and said the 23-year-old was assured of selection at Elland Road tomorrow, describing him as a “top young goalkeeper.” Silvestri took the blame for the costly blunder which contributed to United’s 2-1 loss at Blackburn Rovers last weekend, the second time in a month that the former Chievo player has been at fault for a goal. Redfearn reacted to the incident – a hurried clearance which struck defender Liam Cooper and presented Blackburn striker Jordan Rhodes with a tap-in – by saying Silvestri “needs to learn” and eradicate errors from his game. Leeds’ 3-1 defeat at Cardiff City at the start of November was sealed when Silvestri collided with Giuseppe Bellusci five minutes from time, leaving Kenwyne Jones to ...

Football League World 27/11/14 BY SAM ROURKE Nicky Ajose, who is currently on loan at Crewe Alexandra from Leeds United, has admitted he has wanted to leave the Yorkshire club for months. The 23-year-old striker was signed by ex-Leeds United head-coach David Hockaday back in August, however he found his first-team opportunities severely limited at the Championship outfit. Speaking to the Crewe Alexandra official site, Ajose said: “I`ve wanted to come out for probably about three months now. It`s been difficult to say the least to get out to come and play football. It`s been going on a while now for the possible opportunity to come and play here and finally it`s been done and I`m looking forward to getting back to doing my job. “I want to play football on a Saturday afternoon. I`ve been training on Saturday afternoons for the last three months so having that opportunity to get involved with a squad on a Saturday is something I`m going to relish.” Ajose has an abundance of Football...

Yorkshire Post 27/11/14 Companies House confirmed today that David Haigh and Salah Nooruddin have resigned from Leeds United’s board - several months after the two men actually quit as directors. The departures were announced on Companies House’s website, despite Haigh and Nooruddin tendering their resignations around April of this year. Haigh stepped down as United’s managing director days after current club owner Massimo Cellino completed his takeover. The 36-year-old, who is currently under arrest in Dubai and facing allegations of fraud, was in line to become chief executive under Cellino but left Elland Road after a fall-out with the Italian. Gulf Finance House - the Islamic investment bank which sold 75 per cent of Leeds to Cellino - confirmed today that Nooruddin also resigned from the board in the aftermath of Cellino’s buy-out. Nooruddin held the position of chairman at Elland Road and, under the terms of the Share Purchase Agreement between GFH and Cellino, was due to s...

Yorkshire Evening Post 27/11/14 by Phil Hay Leeds United defender Scott Wootton has joined Rotherham United on loan. The former Manchester United and Liverpool trainee will stay with Rotherham until January 10. Wootton, who moved to Leeds from Manchester United in the summer of 2013, has struggled for opportunities at Elland Road and follows Noel Hunt and Nicky Ajose out of the club. Hunt joined Ipswich Town earlier today and Nicky Ajose’s emergency loan to Crewe Alexandra was confirmed yesterday afternoon. The Football League’s loan window close at 5pm tonight. Leeds are not expected to make any new signings before the deadline.

Yorkshire Evening Post 27/11/14 by Lee Sobot NEIL Redfearn has urged Leeds United’s aching fans to keep the faith, insisting a change in fortunes could be imminent ahead of Saturday’s visit of leaders Derby County. United sit 16th in the Championship table and just two points above the dropzone after picking up just one victory from their last ten league games. However, Redfearn knows his Whites side were mightily unlucky to lose 2-1 at Blackburn Rovers last weekend with the head coach insisting the United tide will turn if performances such as last Saturday’s are matched on a continued basis. The Whites head coach also believes United’s fans recognise his side’s recent improvement - with the 49-year-old believing a passionate home crowd could be integral in dealing with the division’s leaders on Saturday afternoon. Redfearn said: “Our crowd is a massive advantage - anywhere really as we take numbers wherever we go but particularly at home at Elland Road when it’s a full house. ...

leedsunited.com 27/11/14 Striker Noel Hunt has joined Championship rivals Ipswich Town on an emergency loan deal until January 3. Hunt, who arrived at the club from Reading last summer, has made just two United appearances so far this season and has been out of the first-team picture since mid-August. The 31-year-old, signed by Brian McDermott in July 2013, has been playing regularly in the club’s Under-21s side after falling down the pecking order at Elland Road. His debut season at United also proved to be a frustrating one as he was hampered by injury problems and failed to score in any of his 20 appearances. Hunt will now link up with Mick McCarthy’s side and older brother Stephen at Portman Road, where United travel on December 6. However, the striker will be ineligible to play against his parent club.

Yorkshire Evening Post 26/11/14 Leeds United striker Mirco Antenucci says the club are under-performing in their current league position, but will click into form soon with Saturday’s game against Championship leaders Derby County looming. Antenucci urged Leeds to “get out of this situation” after a cruel 2-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers last weekend left the club two points above the relegation places and facing up to a run of one win in 10 matches. United turned in one of their strongest away performances of the season at Ewood Park, but a defensive error and a late penalty – an incident which led to accusations of diving against Rovers striker Luke Varney – resulted in an eighth league defeat. Antenucci, who almost won Saturday’s visit to Lancashire with a late shot which struck a post with the game level at 1-1, expressed his disappointment at Leeds’s league position, but said he was confident of a marked improvement after four months with the squad. Derby come to Elland Road th...

Yorkshire Evening Post 25/11/14 by Phil Hay Crewe Alexandra are being linked with a loan move for Leeds United striker Nicky Ajose ahead of Thursday’s emergency deadline. The out-of-favour forward could complete a switch to Gresty Road until January, provided Leeds and Crewe succeed in reaching a deal over his wages. Ajose has been made available by United head coach Neil Redfearn just four months after joining Leeds in a £150,000 move from Peterborough United. The 23-year-old - a target of former United boss David Hockaday - signed a three-year contract in August but has drifted away from the first-team picture after only a handful of appearances. Crewe are bottom of League One after taking just 15 points their first 18 matches and have targeted new strikers after averaging less than a goal a game. Ajose is one of several players who Redfearn is looking to move out of Thorp Arch before Thursday’s 5pm deadline.

Yorkshire Evening Post 25/11/14 Head coach Neil Redfearn is unlikely to have any new arrivals before the loan transfer market shuts. Phil Hay reports. The emergency loan window has always been a biannual event for Leeds United. The club often used it to compensate for the investment they failed to make in the weeks of FIFA’s official transfer window. This season, Leeds have barely shown an interest in the loan market. Or have barely shown an interest until now. Massimo Cellino was not joking when he said that short-term signings were “a waste of money” and the equivalent of “coaching another team’s player.” This type of move he tends to avoid. The temptation to use this emergency market, especially in the days before Thursday’s deadline, might have got to Cellino on account of the fact that he expects to incur a transfer embargo from the Football League in January – imposed for a breach of Financial Fair Play rules – but the loan window is likely to close at 5pm on Thursday without...

Yorkshire Post 25/11/14 STEPHEN Warnock has vowed to use his experience to lift Leeds United’s young players in the aftermath of Saturday’s cruel 2-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers. A youthful Whites looked to be heading for an important victory after Souleymane Doukara’s strike had given Neil Redfearn’s side a 1-0 lead at the break. But a mix-up between ’keeper Marco Silvestri and Liam Cooper gifted Jordan Rhodes an equaliser and despite having Tom Cairney sent off Rhodes snatched victory with a late penalty awarded for Sam Byram’s foul on Luke Varney. United are now two points above the drop zone ahead of Saturday’s visit of leaders Derby County but Warnock said: “We are a young team aside from myself and probably Mirco (Antenucci) and us and the rest of the lads around the place such as (Michael) Tongey and Stewie Taylor have got to try and lift the place and get them going. We are senior players and that is what senior players do. I am sure Redders will try and lift the lads this we...

Yorkshire Evening Post 24/11/14 by Phil Hay Stephen Warnock described an “angry” dressing room and said Leeds United were paying the price for “stupid mistakes” after a second-half blunder and a debatable penalty led to a 2-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers. Leeds were left to rue their own failings and the award of a contentious, 88th-minute spot-kick as Blackburn fought back from a goal down at Ewood Park to snatch a victory with only 10 men. United opened the scoring in the first half through Souleymane Doukara and looked comfortable for the best part of an hour but Jordan Rhodes equalised when a collision between Leeds goalkeeper Marco Silvestri and defender Liam Cooper presented the striker with a tap-in. Both Leeds head coach Neil Redfearn and left-back Warnock laid the blame for the 71st-minute concession at Silvestri’s door but Redfearn in particular was angered by the match-winning penalty which Rhodes converted two minutes from the end. Referee Kevin Wright punished a challe...

Yorkshire Evening Post 24/11/14 by Phil Hay There is nothing at Leeds United – no breathing space or margin for error – allowing the club to lose as they lost at Ewood Park. Neil Redfearn knows it and the road home from Blackburn on Saturday was long and quiet for him. His team cannot capitulate like this. Not when they play as well as this. Not when they lead until the 71st minute, stifle one of the Championship’s better striker partnerships, finish the game with an extra man and benefit from an away crowd half the size of Clitheroe’s population. There was a difference of opinion about all sorts of issues afterwards and while Gary Bower, the Blackburn Rovers manager, talked up his side and the penalty which won the game, Redfearn lamented a day when everything that could have gone wrong did. “We deserved to win,” Redfearn said, and it seemed possible that Bowyer might privately agree that Leeds had earned more than a post mortem. Rovers’ strikers, Jordan Rhodes and Rudy Gestede, ...

Yorkshire Evening Post 23/11/14 by Phil Hay Neil Redfearn accused former Leeds United striker Luke Varney of diving to win the penalty which condemned the Elland Road club to a dramatic defeat away at Blackburn Rovers on Saturday. Redfearn, United’s head coach, claimed Varney had conned referee Kevin Wright into penalising a tackle from Sam Byram and handing Blackburn the chance of a 2-1 victory at Ewood Park. Byram and Varney – a player who left Leeds for Blackburn on a free transfer in July – came together inside United’s box on 88 minutes with the game level at 1-1 and Rovers down to 10 men after the sending off of Tom Cairney. Jordan Rhodes converted the opportunity to earn Rovers an unlikely win with his second goal of the game. Blackburn manager Gary Bowyer described the penalty as a “stonewaller” but an angry Redfearn criticised Varney for “simulation” as he reflected on an intensely frustrating visit to Lancashire. “The penalty was a joke,” Redfearn said. “It’s difficul...

Yorkshire Evening Post 22/11/14 BITTERLY-DISAPPOINTED Leeds United head coach Neil Redfearn was left to rue a ‘poor decision’ by referee Kevin Wright in awarding Blackburn Rovers a controversial late penalty as the Whites dramatically went down 2-1 at Ewood Park. Leeds were good value for a first-half lead thanks to Souleymane Doukara’s seventh goal of the season in the 33rd minute, only for two cheap concessions to turn the tables in front of almost 7,000 stunned travelling supporters. A crazy concession on 71 minutes saw Rovers draw level when Marco Silvestri provided a horror moment in failing to make a routine clearance when racing out of goal, with Jordan Rhodes tucking the ball into an empty net. Then, two minutes from time, Rovers, down to ten men when ex-Leeds junior Tom Cairney was dismissed following his second caution on 82 minutes, were awarded a penalty after ex-Whites striker Luke Varney went down in the box after what looked like minimal contact from Sam Byram. Rhod...

Yorkshire Evening post 22/11/14 Leeds United’s training ground has its detractors, but since it opened has produced its fair share of players – and financial income – for the Elland Road club. The good news for Kalvin Phillips this week wasn’t the prospect of a day trip to Blackburn Rovers. It was the realisation that Leeds United are starting to think of him in that context. This is how is goes for graduates at Thorp Arch: a sniff, a taste and then the watershed. On occasions Leeds dangle the carrot without offering an immediate chance to bite. Alex Purver, an 18-year-old midfielder, travelled to Birmingham City in September but did not make the bench and has not made his debut. Likewise, the intention with Phillips is to open his eyes, not to drown him at the deep end against an adept Championship club. In the end Leeds chose not to take him to Blackburn but his chance will come. The point is that he and others are on the doorstep. The line of academy players edging into the party...

Yorkshire Evening Post 22/11/14 Neil Redfearn believes Billy Sharp is ready to get his Leeds United career going after a quiet start to life at Elland Road. United’s head coach said Sharp was looking fit and in-form following his recent return from a thigh injury and expects him and Steve Morison to begin putting pressure on the starting places held by Souleymane Doukara and Mirco Antenucci. Sharp was one of United’s major summer signings and he scored a dramatic winner against Middlesbrough on his debut at Elland Road in August. But the 28-year-old has failed to find the net since then and last started a league game two months ago. Morison has been limited to just two starts. Redfearn said: “To be fair to Antenucci and Doukara, to say they’ve come from overseas and this is their first experience of the Championship, they’ve given a good account of themselves. They’ve put themselves in a good position. “But that’s not to say there isn’t competition. Billy’s a proven striker and S...

Yorkshire Evening Post 21/11/14 by Phil Hay Gulf Finance House, the ex-owner of Leeds United, appears to be the target of a remarkable attack in which contact details of senior bank officials have been published online by its own private equity firm. A feed run on behalf of GFH Capital, the Dubai-based arm of GFH which bought Leeds in 2012, began attacking the bank earlier today in a series of rogue tweets aimed at the bank and leading employees. The development came after a week in which GFH Capital’s official website began displaying a newspaper report alleging financial wrongdoing by the bank during its takeover of United two years ago, an accusation GFH denies. Tweets on GFH Capital’s feed this afternoon have now published what it claims are private phone numbers of Hisham Alrayes and Jinesh Patel. The account, which had been dormant since November 2012, began posting the extraordinary messages around lunchtime. Alrayes is chief executive of GFH and was a board member at Ell...

Yorkshire Post 21/11/14 LEEDS United academy product Kalvin Phillips could take a big step towards his first-team debut by featuring in the club’s travelling squad for tomorrow’s game at Blackburn Rovers. Head coach Neil Redfearn - United’s former academy boss - is considering taking Phillips to Ewood Park on the back of his impressive run of form for Leeds’ Under-21s. The 18-year-old midfielder caught the eye with two goals in a recent development-squad game against Nottingham Forest and Redfearn said last week that Phillips was “knocking on the door” of senior involvement. Redfearn took another youngster, Alex Purver, to United’s Championship match at Birmingham City in September, naming Purver in his travelling group before omitting him from the final squad of 18. Phillips, who signed a two-year professional contract in the summer, might be given the same treatment this weekend as Leeds go looking for their second away win of the season. “It’s been in my mind,” Redfearn said. ...

Yorkshire Post 21/11/14 Neil Redfearn wants Leeds United to evolve into a side that no team fancies playing in the Championship. The Whites are eight points outside the play-offs when they resume play after the inetrnational break tomorrow with a a trip to Blackburn Rovers. It’s the first game in a sequence of tough-looking fixtures for Leeds. Derby County, who head the division with 32 points, come to Elland Road next weekend and Leeds will play Ipswich Town, Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Wigan Athletic and Derby again before the start of January. “It’s not so much crunch time,” Redfearn said, “but it is a tough run of games. “We’ve got to get ourselves into a position where we’re more consistent and more thorough so Blackburn look and think, ‘oh, we’ve got Leeds on Saturday’; so Ipswich think ‘oh, we’ve got Leeds on Saturday’; so Derby think ‘we don’t fancy going there.’ “We’ve got to make them think about us so the more consistent we are and the more we portray that image, the be...

Yorkshire Evening Post 20/11/14 by Phil Hay Zan Benedicic is likely to be out until the new year after undergoing knee surgery but the on-loan AC Milan midfielder will remain with Leeds United for the length of his deal. Benedicic travelled to Belgium for an operation on the injury he suffered in September but his agent, Amir Ruznic, said the problem was minor and would not threaten an early end to his time at Elland Road. Leeds signed Benedicic on a season-long loan from AC Milan in August but fitness problems have limited him to two first-team appearances and he was consigned to surgery by damage sustained around the time of Darko Milanic’s appointment as head coach. Ruznic, who worked to negotiate Benedicic’s move to England from Milan, said the 19-year-old Slovenian had required treatment on the meniscus in one knee but claimed the impact of the operation was “not serious”. Benedicic is currently abroad but should return to Leeds next week to begin a programme of rehabilitati...

Yorkshire Evening Post 20/11/14 by PHIL HAY AWAY attendances are Leeds United’s forte. In the past four years their crowds away from home have outstripped the rest of the Championship, peaking at an average of almost 3,500 in 2010-11. Their largest turn-out during that season – a total of 6,763 – came in Barnsley and no bigger away crowd has been recorded since then but Leeds are close to exceeding it at Blackburn Rovers this weekend; close to selling an allocation of 6,900 tickets. Twice in two years Ewood Park has drawn a following this large. Twelve months ago Leeds took 6,727 supporters to Blackburn, one of the few clubs in the Championship who are able or willing to provide so many tickets. Leeds are involved in a constant fight for increased allocations and Blackburn obliged ahead of Saturday’s game, bumping up an initial offer of 4,200 in the Darwen End. “It’s a huge bonus for us,” said United’s head coach, Neil Redfearn, but the 49-year-old accepts that a following of clos...

Yorkshire Evening Post 20/11/14 by Phil Hay and Leon Wobschall NEIL Redfearn remains confident that Leeds United will secure his preferred choice of assistant boss, with Huddersfield Town’s Steve Thompson still in line to land the job. United’s head coach has been waiting to confirm the appointment of a number two for the past week-and-a-half but he said the club had assured him the matter “will be sorted.” Thompson - Chris Powell’s first-team coach at Huddersfield and formerly a team-mate of Redfearn’s at Bolton Wanderers - was Redfearn’s first choice after his own appointment as head coach earlier this month. Redfearn has operated with the support of goalkeeping coach Neil Sullivan and fitness coach Matt Pears during the past three league matches but he and Leeds owner Massimo Cellino agreed on the need for a full-time assistant following the sacking of previous head coach Darko Milanic and his number two, Novica Nikcevic. “I know who I want and I’ve left it with the club,” Red...

Yorkshire Evening Post 19/11/14 by Phil Hay Leeds United midfielder Zan Benedicic has undergone surgery on a knee injury and will return to England to begin his rehabilitation next week. Benedicic - on loan at Leeds from AC Milan - travelled to Belgium for a specialist operation on damaged meniscus, his agent confirmed to the YEP. The 19-year-old has been nursing the injury for almost two months and is unlikely to be fit until the second half of the season. United signed him on a year-long loan from Milan in August but the Slovenian youngster has played only twice since moving to Elland Road. His agent, Amir Ruznic, said: “It’s not serious but I don’t know how long he’ll be out. I think he’ll be back in Leeds next week.” Benedicic’s career has been affected by previous knee injuries and United boss Neil Redfearn said: “He’s been between surgeons for a while. It was important to make sure he got the right treatment. “He’s had knee injuries before and he’s only young so he needed...

Yorkshire Post 19/11/14 LEEDS United will prioritise outgoing loans over new signings in the last week of the emergency window, head coach Neil Redfearn revealed last night. Redfearn is focusing on moving surplus players on from Thorp Arch and said he had sidelined a number from first-team training sessions in an attempt to “stop my message getting diluted.” The Football League’s loan window closes at 5pm a week tomorrow and Leeds have not negotiated a single move in or out of their squad since the market opened in early September. The club’s Italian owner, Massimo Cellino, is resistant to the idea of short-term signings but Redfearn admitted before the international break that he was looking for additions to his squad and “a bit of help” for a young group of players. United’s new head coach hinted that arrivals were possible before next week’s deadline but, he reiterated the importance of finding alternative clubs for players with no prospect of featuring in his line-up this seaso...

Kick start: United head coach hoping work on training ground during international break will start to pay dividends. Leon Wobschall reports. CONSISTENCY, THAT oh-so-precious footballing quality governing the fortunes of a host of Championship sides, with Leeds United no different. For a side still evolving after being almost thrown together in the close-season when United made a spate of signings in the build-up to the start of the campaign at Millwall on August 9, it is something that has proved elusive to the club, onto their third permanent head coach already in 2014-15 with the season not yet three-and-a-half months old. The Whites nation are hoping, some probably praying, that some continuity and coherence, both on the pitch and in the dug-out following the arrival of Neil Redfearn, will provide some order in United’s season in the coming weeks to stabilise matters. In a line-up which contains a number of continental players still acclimatising to Championship life and young ...

Yorkshire Evening Post 18/11/14 by Leon Wobschall NEIL REDFEARN insists he is not discounting Leeds United’s prospects of propelling themselves firmly into top-six contention in the Championship – despite an indifferent start to the current campaign. Leeds resume after the international break with a tough-looking clash at Blackburn Rovers on Saturday, with the club having recorded back-to-back league wins just once since mid-April. United lie in 15th spot in the Championship and remain a work in progress with almost three-and-a-half months of the season gone, just four points above the bottom three and eight points off the play-off pace. But head coach Redfearn is not writing off their hopes of making a bid for the play-offs if his side can gel together on a consistent basis in the weeks and months ahead. Given a close-season which saw 15 players come in and a host of others depart during a frenetic summer transfer window, the smart money was on some form of transitional period be...