Elland Road play-off karma for Leeds United as ghosts of Frank Lampard, Derby, Millwall and more are finally dispelled in cathartic and wonderful fashion against poor Norwich City — Yorkshire Post 16/5/24

By Leon Wobschall

JOB DONE, as Billy Davies might say. And plenty more besides.

In the words of that late Norfolk celebrity Bernard Matthews. Bootiful.

The ghosts and ghouls of play-offs past had stalked Leeds United for many a year and they clung to Elland Road before this latest instalment.

There has been pain in Cardiff, London and Birmingham, but too much at LS11 over the years and decades, let’s be honest.

Frank Lampard’s schadenfreude moment almost five years to the day after being told to ‘stop crying’ continually, Kiko Casilla’s brainstorm, Jimmy Abdou, Jermaine Beckford’s penalty miss, Carlisle’s one-two.

Leeds came into this game without a victory on parched home soil in their tortuous play-off history since March 25, 1987 when Charlton Athletic were beaten 1-0.

Some 13,507 days ago or 36 years, 11 months and 21 days, if you prefer. Games against Davies’ Preston, Carlisle, Millwall and Derby. No more.

To break the cycle, Leeds conjured a night they could have scarcely dreamt of beforehand with Wembley chants aired before half-time.

This sort of thing is not supposed to happen to Leeds United in the play-offs. Leeds United 3-0 ahead in a play-off inside 42 minutes. Never….

That was the glorious reality. Not even Leeds could mess this up, surely..

A wall of electric white noise and decoration which wouldn’t have looked out of place at the Santiago Bernabeu greeted those in home colours before kick-off.

There were also scarves placed on every home seat and they were raised with gusto. To the cynics - including this journalist - it bore an unwelcome rewind to that mad May night against Derby in 2019 when many of the aforesaid items were left discarded by the time that Elland Road emptied and headed solemnly into the night after a desperate, scarcely believable evening.

Then, Derby had fought back from a 2-0 semi-final aggregate deficit to triumph and break Leeds hearts by scoring four unanswered goals.

Trailing badly at the break, those in the yellow and green of Norwich City, on this particular occasion, were the ones who looked broken. It looked a game too far and it was.

One of the smiles of the season from Ilia Greuv, following a sweet disguised free-kick routine with Crysencio Summerville, worked a treat and got the show on the road with a little help from Angus Gunn. What a time to score your first goal for your club.

A second from Joel Piroe at the far post, a deft header which got the finish it deserved from a sumptuous cross from the right from Wilfried Gnonto was a reminder of much better times for Leeds before the international break.

One of Daniel Farke’s favourite words this season has been ‘greedy.’ Mindful that 2-0 advantages aren’t gin-and-tonic time in the play-offs for their particular club, Leeds took the hint and went for more.

They had endured some lean times of late and looked famished.

Not before Norwich tested a few nerves. It was never going to be that easy was it - with Illan Meslier producing a big moment in the context of this tie by thwarting danger man Josh Sargent, who failed to convert the sort of chance he had scored in his sleep so far in 2024.

Georginio Rutter rammed in a third to complete the most extraordinary of halves ahead of the interval.

At half-time, Leeds supporters were entitled to turn around to their nearest fellow fan and say ‘Did that really happen? Just as they did after those brutal events against Derby for different reasons.

As with Derby previously, Norwich gasped for air, but they found no oxygen. Piroe almost added a fourth at the start of the second half. The Gelderd End were rather enjoying this.

Summerville went close, twice, while Piroe tested Gunn, atoning himself after his early blooper.

This was Leeds’ night, just as it was Norwich’s when Farke when in charge of the Canaries at this particular venue in a summit meeting in February 2019 where they were chirpy afterwards following a 3-1 win.

Summerville provided the coup de grace by scoring the goal his performance so richly deserved.

Leeds had their mojo back as a sardonic ‘Leeds are falling apart’ chant reverberated around this grand old stadium. All the old favourites came out, alongside Que Sera Sera. An old favourite in Liam Cooper appeared.

After laying the Elland Road play-off ghost, now for Wembley. This time the flags were kept.