Leeds United: Time to Get Back to the Football

Article by e-Leeds Correspondent Jeremy Taylor

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Being a fan of Leeds United has always been an emotionally taxing affair.

As a club they are, it seems, terminally beset with a noxious blend of distain, alienation and unrelenting misfortune that harks back to the beginning of the last century when Leeds was little more than a sprawling industrialised slum.

Even when the great Revie team were the most feared side in Europe, there was always suspicion, conspiracy and incidence after incidence of sheer rotten luck.

The only true positive to be drawn from the whole experience of being a Leeds United fan is the unique sense of togetherness and passion that sets the Elland Road faithful apart.

This is something that other fans of other clubs never quite seem to ascend (or be it descend) to, a sentiment that even the most ardent of Leeds United antagonists begrudgingly testify to.

Even those that truly hate Leeds United always maintain a respect for the sheer intensity of the fan base, all while they laugh at the club’s perpetual misfortune.

This latest twist doesn’t quite fall into the category of misfortune, probably because most fans saw it coming. There will always be blind optimism amongst sections of fans, but most will admit to fearing the worst once the details of the latest fraud accusation against Massimo Cellino surfaced just over a fortnight ago.

The conspiracy theorists amongst them won’t have failed to notice that the case was heard, considered and concluded within ten early minutes on the 18th March in Sardinia, suggesting that Massimo was right not to show up in person, as it was clearly decided beforehand. Whether the local Sardinian government could simply do with a fiscal injection or whether there was someone else in the background driving the rather swift decision we’ll never know, but it certainly shows that justice in Italy can be nimble when it wants to be.

One can bet the appeal process will be somewhat less punchy.

What Next?

There are all sorts of ‘financial experts’ making themselves heard now and prophesising imminent doom for the club but as always the truth is far from clear.

The only thing that is indisputable is that GFH have not been done a favour by Justice Sandra Lepore slapping a conviction on Cellino quicker than he could have dived off the bow of ‘Nelie’ into the crystal blue waters that she wasn’t supposed to be sailing in.

Surely the likes of Patel and Noorrudin will be hot-footing it to Bahrain right about now, cap in hand, to ask for help with the bills. After all, someone has to pay the players and it won’t be in lira from now on.

GFH are now faced with the prospect of pumping more (borrowed) money into the club or face losing everything through administration, a scenario that surely leaves no choice but the lesser of two evils for the Islamic bank.

If they weren’t already, they must be ruing the day they ever stepped foot in Leeds.

So what of Mike Farnan and Co?

The Together Leeds Consortium must be grinning away in their leather office recliners, but the question must be whether they are smiling as a result of fresh opportunity or just satisfaction that the house they were thrown out of is now on the verge of falling into the sea.

Another question to be asked is whether David Haigh was calmly stating that “Leeds United will not go into administration” because of some secret knowledge he has, such as funding assurances from GFH or other buyers in the wings. Or, was he just blindly delivering rhetoric in the face of imminent doom, like Iraq’s foreign minister who famously declared that there was no chance of invasion as the Allied tanks rolled into Baghdad behind him.

Points on the Board

Amidst all the drama and developments being played out between the Football League, Leeds United and the King of Corn, there’s still the small matter of football to think about.

Leeds United’s biggest concern right now should be the acquisition of points, because the last thing the club needs is to be relegated again. Leeds United are currently twelve points ahead of 22nd place Millwall, and should we win our next match, against Millwall, then we’ll be fifteen points clear of danger.

With other games coming up against teams below, the opportunity is still very much there for the club to climb well away from trouble.

Should the unthinkable happen and the club does get deducted ten or fifteen points, providing the buffer between the Leeds United and whichever outfit sits third from bottom come 3rd May exceeds the current one, we’ll stay in the division. That is all that matters at the end of the day.

As fans, the only thing that can be influenced out of this mess is team performance through vociferous support. The Leeds faithful need to get behind the team more than ever and do everything possible to help get points on the board. The next four games are all quite winnable and should the team, as unthinkable as it is, actually win them, the mood will be very, very different. The whole club will be looking up again instead of down and football will become more important than the corporate nonsense that’s been overshadowing it for too long.

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