Leeds’ unbeaten start ends, Will Ferrell in the stands — and what next for Elland Road? — The Athletic 14/9/24

By Richard Sutcliffe

Leeds United suffered a first Championship defeat of the season as two of the early-season favourites for promotion from the Championship went head-to-head at Elland Road.

Luca Koleosho, Burnley’s Connecticut-born Italian youth international, settled a hard-fought War of the Roses match with a composed finish, meaning even a red card for Bashir Humphreys in the eighth minute of stoppage time could not take the shine off a great day for Scott Parker’s men.

The Athletic looks at some of the major talking points.

Mistakes on (and off?) the pitch

“I’m in a glass case of emotion,” is how Ron Burgundy — aka actor Will Ferrell — would perhaps have best summed up his first appearance at Elland Road since becoming a minority investor in Leeds United.

The lead character from 1970s parody film Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy boasts a number of familiar catchphrases, including “Stay classy, San Diego” and “By the beard of Zeus”.

But, on an afternoon when Leeds gradually ran out of both ideas and steam, his garbled metaphor seemed to articulate best how everyone from supporters through to the owners and even manager Daniel Farke had been put through the emotional wringer.

“The game itself, not the result, left me encouraged even more that we will play a good season,” insisted the Leeds manager afterwards. On how his side had started the game, creating two gilt-edged opportunities for Mateo Joseph and Wilfried Gnonto, it was perhaps easy to agree.

But, after that, Farke’s words seem a tad optimistic considering how that initial encouragement quickly gave way to a sense of frustration over how those two one-on-one opportunities with goalkeeper James Trafford were wasted and also that a slip by Manor Solomon led to the only goal.

By the final whistle, the mood had shifted once again, this time to exasperation, both over the inability to break down Burnley’s defence despite dominating possession and the nonsensical approach that saw the ball passed around between goalkeeper and defence even as the clock ticked down in stoppage time.

Just how things gradually turned sour over 102 minutes of this Yorkshire-Lancashire scrap perhaps explains why such unease over Leeds’ work in the transfer window remains. The failure to sign a recognised No 10 following the departure of Crysencio Summerville and Georginio Rutter is a particularly sore point.

Losing such a talented duo was always going to weaken the attack. Their ability to conjure something out of nothing was sorely missed against Burnley, especially during a second half played almost exclusively in the visitors’ half.

With Glen Kamara and Archie Gray also departing in a summer when Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) concentrated minds, this left big holes to fill.

While there does feel to be more of a balance across the squad this time around — it seems unlikely a 17-year-old midfielder will be pressed into action at right back, for instance, as happened with Gray last season — the fear has to be that once behind and chasing a game, as happened on Saturday, Leeds are going to have problems when up against such a well-drilled outfit as Burnley.

It leaves plenty for Ferrell and the actor’s fellow United owners, 49ers Enterprises, to ponder on his first football trip to these shores since having lunch with The Athletic at Wrexham in February 2023.

No place like home…

As Elland Road positively sparkled in the lunchtime sunshine, there was much to admire about the old place.

The atmosphere for a start, the noise levels at kick-off being worthy of a clash between two clubs expected to lead the charge for automatic promotion.

There was a sense of occasion, too, at a ground where only the building of the East Stand in 1993 alters a vista that otherwise would be familiar to those old enough to witness Brian Clough’s infamous 44-day reign as manager, which came to an end 50 years ago last week.

Leeds may have lost their way against Burnley as well as ultimately the points, meaning by the end it was the jubilant 3,000 visiting fans making all the noise. But, still, there remains something special about a ground that was once likened by Sir Alex Ferguson to “something out of (the film) Zulu” after a visit from his Manchester United side.

Whether this will survive a long overdue redevelopment of United’s home has been debated long and hard over the years. We may finally be about to find out, judging by a far-reaching interview with United chief executive Angus Kinnear on the Square Ball podcast that included positive news on the stadium.

He revealed there was “real traction” behind the plans to expand the capacity to around 53,000 for the first time in his “six or seven years at the club”. This extended to how “a multi-million-pound sum” had been spent on putting together a project team who meet “two or three times a week with a view to submitting the planning application”.

Let’s hope this preparatory work has included a means of retaining an atmosphere that, in this era of modern soulless stadiums, is becoming increasingly rare.

Will there be a play-off hangover?

Leeds United know all too well the perils that can come with losing the Championship play-off final.

Just 12 months after surrendering 3-0 to Watford in the 2006 promotion decider, Leeds slid into League One on the back of a calamitous relegation season featuring 44 players, three managers, eight captains and one administration.

No other club in the Premier League era has suffered such a dramatic fall after losing what is widely regarded as the richest game in world football, such was the financial reward Southampton claimed at United’s expense by triumphing 1-0 at Wembley in May.

Saturday may not have gone to plan against Burnley but United still boast two more points than they did at the corresponding stage a year ago, suggesting the current crop are firmly in the running to emulate the six beaten play-off finalists over the past 20 years who went on to clinch promotion the following season.

Brentford are the most recent in 2021, but Aston Villa (2019), Middlesbrough (2016), Reading (2012), West Bromwich Albion (2008) and West Ham United (2005) have also achieved a feat that suggests, United’s own abject collapse in 2006-07 apart, a play-off hangover is not really a thing in the Championship.

What’s next?

Leeds travel to Cardiff City on Saturday, September 21.