Mighty Leeds Weblog

 

Patrick Bamford's early strike and a neat finish from Mateusz Klich failed to stop Real Betis from recording a 3-2 victory against Leeds United in Saturday's pre-season friendly in Loughborough. By Lee Sobot Leeds went ahead in the seventh minute when a lovely move down the left ended with Junior Firpo's cross being headed home by Bamford into the far corner. Betis equalised just three minutes later when Aitor's shot from inside the box trickled past Illan Meslier and hit the post before finding the back of the net. Leeds squandered a golden chance to go back ahead moments later when Jack Harrison blazed over from inside the box. After a decent build up down the right, Raphinha's firm low drive was then kept out by a strong save from Rui Silva. But Betis went ahead in the 23rd minute when Leeds were caught out down the left flank and a cross set up Borja Iglesias who fired home from the middle of the box. After seemingly injuring himself in the build u...

ALFIE BURNS Phil Hay has revealed that the fee to take Kristoffer Klaesson from Valerenga to Leeds United is in excess of £1m. Leeds have confirmed that signing of Klaesson this morning, sourcing themselves cover for Illan Meslier and a replacement for Kiko Casilla after his departure. The 20-year-old’s arrival is something of a bargain too. As per Phil Hay at The Athletic, Klaesson has arrived for a fee ‘in the excess’ of £1m. He’s made 55 senior appearances for Valerenga despite his tender age and arrives with plenty of clamour. Leeds have handed the goalkeeper a long-term contract, too, with the goalkeeper’s terms at Elland Road keeping him at the club until at least the summer of 2025. Despite that, he will begin the season behind Meslier in the pecking order, with Bielsa’s faith with the Frenchman who helped Leeds to ninth in the Premier League last season. Given Klaesson is coming in as a back-up goalkeeper, it was quite important that Leeds didn’t pay over the od...

Pablo Hernandez has conceded that his time at Leeds United will remain the most memorable years of his career, but admitted that he did not like the way it ended for him at Elland Road. Hernandez spent six years at Leeds and played a major role in helping the Whites back to the Premier League in the 2019/20 season. However, in his last season at Leeds, the Spaniard became a peripheral figure and was only used sparsely as Marcelo Bielsa moved on to younger players to replace the 36-year-old. He admitted that while he played in the Champions League with Valencia, his years at Leeds will remain the most memorable of his career and getting them back to the Premier League will remain special. However, the Spaniard conceded that the last six months of his time at Leeds were difficult as he was used to playing regularly and admitted that he was not happy towards the end at Elland Road. “I played good football at Valencia, in the Champions League, and in that time I went to the natio...

Leeds United have completed their sixth signing of the summer by recruiting Norwegian goalkeeper Kristoffer Klaesson from Valerenga. By Lee Sobot The 20-year-old Norway under-21s stopper arrives at the club for an undisclosed fee as a replacement for the outgoing Kiko Casilla who has joined La Liga side Elche on a season-long loan. Klaesson - who has signed a four-year deal - follows Junior Firpo in being a new face for United's first team squad this summer. First team winger and former Whites loanee Jack Harrison has also joined on a permanent deal from Manchester City this summer in which Lewis Bate, Sean McGurk and Amari Miller have also been signed, initially to link up with the under-23s.

By Mark Smith Kristoffer Klaesson has completed his medical at Leeds United ahead of completing his move to Elland Road this week That’s according to LUFC FANZONE, who have shared that he will put pen-to-paper on a five-year contract with the Whites. Klaesson will go straight into the first-team and provide competition for Illan Meslier by replacing Kiko Casilla. Sharing the news on their personal Instagram account on Friday evening, it appears as though Klaesson will be announced this weekend. “Kristoffer Klaesson (20) has undergone a medical in Leeds this afternoon and is set to sign a five-year deal at Leeds,” they wrote. Done deal. View this post on Instagram A post shared by LUFCFANZONE (@lufcfanzone) This was a deal that was supposed to be confirmed on Friday, but the medical and media duties are likely to have pushed that back. It is likely that the move will be confirmed on social media channels at some point today, and unleash Victor Orta...

Leeds United’s development side have earned the right to enjoy trips to the likes of the Emirates and the Tottenham Hotspur stadium. By Joe Urquhart Last year’s promotion to the top tier of the Premier League 2 pyramid has meant the Whites are playing at the highest level English academy football has to offer. There was, though, no romance in a trip to League One Fleetwood Town on Friday night; United’s rising stars travelled to the Lancashire coast for business. Preparation at Thorp Arch for the upcoming campaign has been gruelling for all of Marcelo Bielsa’s troops over the last month or so but this week competitive pre-season action has kicked into life. A run of four games in five days tells you how seriously Leeds are taking the lead up to a second term in the Premier League. With the Whites ‘senior’ players taking on La Liga outfit Real Betis at Loughborough University on Saturday lunchtime, Bielsa sent another youthful line-up into deepest, darkest Lancashire to face...

The Leeds under-23s are beaten away to Fleetwood in their second pre-season fixture. By Ciaran O'Hare Leeds United’s under-23s were beaten away to Simon Grayson’s Fleetwood Town in their second pre-season match. The Whites opened the scoring from a Stuart McKinstry corner-kick which met Charlie Cresswell in the middle, whose bullet header was unstoppable for Alex Cairns between the sticks. 💥 "Good ball... CRESSWELL!!!" 📺 https://t.co/uILnnfa4dl pic.twitter.com/M23p352fTj — Leeds United (@LUFC) July 30, 2021 Summerville and Dean also came close to doubling the Leeds lead, with Summerville’s deflected strike being tipped onto the bar. Summerville had a hand in Dean’s chance as he nipped a pass into the middle for Drameh who helped it on to Dean in the middle. His first touch opened the space, his second drilled the shot just wide. As the half was coming to a close, Fleetwood started to show their dangerous side as numerous chances in the space of ten minutes...

Leeds United have revealed their new away kit for the forthcoming Premier League campaign. By Lee Sobot Just over one week after releasing the club's new home strip, Leeds showed off their new blue away kit across their social media channels on Friday afternoon. Marching On Together #DifferentByDesign @adidasfootball 🎵🔥 - @iamgraft - Ignited Flows pic.twitter.com/70VR4v7jro — Leeds United (@LUFC) July 30, 2021 The new strip is available to purchase next Wednesday, in-store from 8am and online from 9am. Describing the new kit on their website, Leeds said: "Taking cues from classic away kits from the club’s past. "The Leeds United 2021/22 away kit was revealed on the club's social media accounts today as we celebrate our amazing travelling support. "The kit will be available to purchase in-store from 8am and online from 9am. MyLeeds+ members and Season Ticket Holders will be able to purchase online exclusively from 8am by logging in with your MyL...

Leeds United’s record signing Rodrigo knows his first season at Elland Road was not exactly plain sailing. By Lee Sobot Setbacks through either injury or coronavirus meant game time was limited during his first year with the Whites. Despite finishing the 2020-21 Premier League campaign with a bang, Rodrigo was overlooked for a place in the Spain squad at the European Championships. Yet the £27m recruit is looking forward, not back, and says he has time on his side to achieve his next goals for both club and country. From a club perspective, even a repeat of last season’s efforts would be a major achievement given United’s ninth-place finish as a newly-promoted side. Rodrigo, though, hopes he will be in for a less disrupted passage throughout the forthcoming campaign having been hampered by either groin and muscle injuries or Covid-19 last term. The Spaniard sat out 12 league games and 12 of his 26 league appearances came from the bench. Despite finishing the campaign wi...

Rodrigo played a little over an hour in Leeds United's 1-1 draw at Blackburn Rovers on Wednesday night. Busting the inevitable rust around the edges of Leeds United’s intense patterns of play was the message from Marcelo Bielsa to his players at Blackburn Rovers. The Whites turned their pre-season programme up a few notches from the curtain-raiser at Guiseley on Tuesday night with a strong squad at Ewood Park. Aside from Sam Greenwood, everyone to feature could be considered bona fide members of Bielsa’s core group for the coming season, and yet the match failed to catch light. Pascal Struijk levelled affairs as late as the 81st minute in what was an archetypal pre-season friendly full of disjointed phases, loose passes and wayward shots. Speaking after the match, Rodrigo summed up what the head coach’s message had been going into their first match for more than two months. “He wants to see in the team the intensity which is characteristic of our group,” he said. “We ...

Key findings from the finance company's 30th Annual Review of Football Finance, published on Thursday, reveal the combined football market across the 'big five' European leagues contracted by 13 per cent in 2019/20, down to 25.2bn euros (£22.1bn). Football clubs can hope to emerge from the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic as more sustainable in the long-term, says Deloitte's Dan Jones Football clubs could emerge from the impact of coronavirus as more sustainable in the long-term despite new figures from Deloitte showing a European-wide 3.7billion euro (£3.4bn) reduction in revenue. Key findings from the finance company's 30th Annual Review of Football Finance, published on Thursday, reveal the combined football market across the 'big five' European leagues contracted by 13 per cent in 2019/20, down to 25.2bn euros (£22.1bn). As initially reported by Deloitte in June, Premier League clubs' revenue fell from a record £5.2bn in 2018/19 t...

A night to remember for each of the lucky 4,500 in attendance at Ewood Park. By Joe Urquhart Leeds United s first team were back in action against Blackburn Rovers and in front of their adoring public for the first time without restrictions for 18 months. Traffic halted many journeys over the Pennines, pub gardens were filled around Ewood Park on the drive in and cheers along with boos were heard as the Whites emerged from the tunnel; for a brief second all was right in the world. Every tackle was felt in the opening exchanges of the 1-1 draw and every 50-50 roared in anger - when Raphinha slid in on the far side to save a corner it was like a goal had been scored for the visitors. Had an onlooker stepped in off the street they could've been forgiven for not knowing a friendly was being played between the Whites and Rovers. A first rendition of Marching On Together from the packed Darwen End must've caused lumps in throats. A salute at full-time came, too. Bielsa...

 

Leeds United's pre-season kicked off with a 1-1 draw against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park on Wednesday night. By Joe Urquhart Marcelo Bielsa unleashed the big guns at Ewood Park as Junior Firpo was handed a Whites debut in Lancashire. Club captain Liam Cooper, striker Patrick Bamford and England's Kalvin Phillips were all absent in an otherwise strong senior line-up following the Under-23s outing at Guiseley on Tuesday. United started on the front foot in a game that otherwise ebbed and flowed throughout the opening 45 minutes. Raphinha provided the first spark as he cut a ball back to Rodrigo inside the area with the Spaniard forcing a good save from goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski. Rovers almost opened the scoring themselves as a Ryan Nyambe ball found Adam Armstrong in on goal but Diego Llorente came to the rescue with a perfectly-timed tackle. Llorente enjoyed a strong first half along with Jamie Shackleton - who was featuring at right-back - but in true friendly...

The Whites draw at Ewood Park in the senior team’s opening pre-season match. By Ciaran O'Hare Blackburn Rovers v Leeds United - Pre-Season Friendly - Ewood Park Leeds United played out a 1-1 draw with Blackburn Rovers to kick-off the 2021/22 pre-season fixtures. The Leeds fans got their first look at Junior Firpo in a white jersey while the familiar faces of Raphinha, Struijk and Llorente starred as the team’s best performers. It was Mateusz Klich who provided the first sniff of danger in this one, as the ball was cut inside to him by Raphinha before Klich’s looping shot across the keeper was tipped wide by the Blackburn stopper. Raphinha was the only other Leeds player to test the goalkeeper in the first half as his whipped strike from outside the area forced him into a decent stop to tip the ball over the bar. The Whites didn’t have too many problems defensively, but Diego Llorente was ready for battle when a loose pass from Pascal Struijk left the defence in a spot...

Leeds United began their pre-season friendlies with a victory as Mark Jackson took charge of a young side that recorded a 3-2 triumph at Tuesday evening's hosts Guiseley. By Lee Sobot Whites head coach Marcelo Bielsa was also present at Nethermoor and looked on as Leeds went ahead in the 17th minute through a Crysencio Summerville penalty. The tricky Dutchman won the spot kick after being tripped following some nifty footwork and Summerville coolly slotted home the penalty into the bottom left corner. Guiseley then drew level just seven minutes later as Kaine Felix broke clear down the right hand side and sent in a low cross that Bailey Thompson side footed past Elia Caprile. The rest of the half then became the Sam Greenwood free-kick show as the Whites won three set pieces on the edge of the box. Greenwood took them all and sent the first two over before the third hit the wall and Amari Miller scooped the rebound over. But Greenwood made it fourth time lucky when cu...

Bournemouth have signed defender Leif Davis on a season-long loan from Leeds with a view to a permanent move. Davis, 21, can operate as a left-back or central defender and has made nine Premier League appearances for Leeds - eight of them as a substitute. The loan deal includes an option for the Cherries to buy him. "I'm delighted to be here and I want to try and help the club get back to the Premier League because that's where they belong," he said. Davis is under contract at Leeds until 2023.

Mateusz Klich has explained the rationale behind Leeds United's hardest pre-season under Marcelo Bielsa so far. By Lee Sobot Klich, though, hopes the toughest part of the summer has now been left behind as Leeds await their first pre-season friendly at Guiseley tonight (kick-off 7.30pm). Polish international midfielder Klich was one of six players to represent Leeds at this summer's European Championships which meant a shorter break for those involved. As he approaches his fourth season with the Whites, the Leeds ace admits he would have ideally preferred "more holidays", especially considering the Pole's sheer amount of game time. Klich even admits that his fourth pre-season at Elland Road has been the toughest yet - but all because Leeds are looking to push on after a superb ninth-placed finish upon their Premier League return. "It's harder, I think everybody says it is harder," Klich told BBC Radio Leeds, asked if there were any differ...

Leeds United hero Pablo Hernandez has spoken for the first time since securing an emotional move home to Castellón. By Joe Urquhart The 36-year-old said a tearful goodbye to Elland Road in May ahead of his summer departure following a five-year stay in West Yorkshire. Hernandez was a vital figure in the Whites resurgence back to the Premier League, playing a decisive role in the club's promotion run-in a year ago. Leeds parted ways with the former Spain international as they agreed to terminate his contract a year early so he could move home to be with his family. After assessing his options, Hernandez decided to move back to where his career began nearly 20 years ago. He also still holds shares in Castellón having helped the club stave off insolvency in 2017. He was a youth player with his hometown team but was picked up by La Liga outfit Valencia as a youngster. Hernandez has now returned to the club where he has strong family ties, penning a three-year contract whi...

It is a staple of Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United that players under his guidance have pushed themselves to new heights. By Joe Urquhart Examples can be found wherever you look in the Elland Road squad but Whites winger Jack Harrison is among the group of those who, from the outside looking in, have benefited the most from continuity under the Argentine boss. The 24-year-old is finally a Leeds player after spending three seasons on loan in LS11 from Manchester City and looks like a snip at £11m. Harrison helped play a key role in United’s promotion back to the Premier League in his second term after overcoming a number of obstacles in his opening year in West Yorkshire. By his own admission, he struggled to adapt to the pressures of playing regular Championship football after gaining first-team experience in the MLS with New York City. “I’ve been grateful for all the playing time I’ve had,” Harrison reflected after making his move official earlier this month. “As a player t...

by Ian At a point when they’re being openly threatened with an independent regulator because it is generally considered that they are incapable of getting their own house in order, the decision of the EFL to appoint Peter Ridsdale, of all people, to their board is certainly a bold move. As an organisation that has overseen the complete collapse of two of its member clubs in the last three years and is now widely derided by supporters, we might have expected them to be a little more circumspect, but in the insular world of professional football, the ideal candidate can often feel like the person you know best, regardless of their history. In the case of Peter Ridsdale, there is certainly one of those. His arrival at Leeds United in the summer of 1997 coincided with a couple of fallow seasons following their surprise league title in 1992 and subsequent ups and downs. Ridsdale was certainly confident, and wasn’t afraid to make a rash promise or two. The club started to spend more heav...

Captain looking ahead to the new season. Liam Cooper has given his thoughts to LUTV, after returning to training at Thorp Arch. The skipper has been impressed with the way the side have returned to pre-season training, speaking highly of his teammates and their dedication to keeping fitness levels up over the summer.   “Yeah good, enjoying it!” Cooper explained on pre-season so far. “As everyone can imagine, it is tough. The boys have had a good rest but come back and hit the ground running. “They’ve stuck to their programmes in the off-season and yeah, we’re fit! The manager is always wanting us to be fitter, but everyone is in great shape to be fair. “I think it is always essential to be in top shape, that’s the way the football world is nowadays.   “The international lads have been coming back in dribs and drabs, the better they did in the tournament the later they come back. “We’re ready to go, the manager wants his squad together so we can work on what we ...

By Joe Urquhart Leeds United’s sporting director Victor Orta is well versed in selling the Thorp Arch dream these days. The Whites have been aggressive in their academy recruitment since his arrival to West Yorkshire in 2017. United’s investment in youth was an early priority for Orta’s scouting department as incoming owner Andrea Radrizzani tasked him with a rebuild four years ago. A step up to top-tier academy status last summer has helped as Leeds attracted the likes of Joe Gelhardt, Sam Greenwood and Cody Drameh to LS11. Now another step up into the highest division of England’s elite competitive youth structure has helped again. Chelsea’s Lewis Bate might yet be the biggest coup for Leeds in their dealings at development level. The 18-year-old is an England youth international who has been moulded since the age of eight by the Stamford Bridge club. The Blues’ packed senior ranks mean that any homegrown talent coming through has to be the best of the best. Mason Mount...

Striker gives his thoughts on pre-season. Patrick Bamford has chatted exclusively with LUTV ahead of the new season beginning. The striker is currently undergoing a gruelling pre-season, working hard to keep up his fitness levels for August’s Premier League kick-off against Manchester United. Comparing the work put in already this year to previous years, Bamford discussed his return from holiday with LUTV. He said: “I think it’s getting tough every year! It has been hard but it’s been good. “What we did the first year with Marcelo, things have now grown on top of that so rather than just be a standard pre-season, we push ourselves to get better. “Normally you can come into pre-season and be a little bit off it, and by the end of pre-season you’ll be ready. “Here you have to do a lot in the off-season to make sure you can start at the base you need to here, which is also important for reducing injuries. “By the end of it, we’ll all be flying!” Least season’s top-scorer...