Massimo Cellino Needs to Act, and Quickly

Article by Jeremy Taylor @jezaldinho

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While Massimo Cellino has undoubtedly breathed new life and optimism into Leeds United and its fans, the disappointing result and performance at Millwall has only served to highlight the cold hard reality of the current situation at Elland Road.

Any excitement from opening throws of the season quickly evaporated on Saturday afternoon, leaving that truth that there is still much to do in terms of getting the squad to a place where it can compete effectively in the Championship; a division that continues to grow stronger each year.

Time is running out and as every week passes, the chances of Leeds United blending a winning team in time for a decent crack at this season look less and less likely. So much so that some in the bookmaking business are actually tipping Leeds for the drop.

A tad dramatic one feels, but nevertheless Cellino needs to act, and quickly.

The natural thing to do is to assume the worst and fear for the season ahead, an outlook that’s difficult to argue with given the abject performance in the season opener.

But, it’s important to put things into perspective and understand that this team is very much a work in progress both in terms of shape, fitness and general cohesion.

Optimists will point out that the players are still adapting to a new system and that historically we don’t do well in Bermondsey anyway. They might also say that there are over 130 points left to play for and this result shouldn’t be over-considered. Over recent times we’ve done well in the opening fixture and it’s meant nothing over the marathon. If we can get things ironed out over the opening games then perhaps we might be better placed in the longer term.

The pessimists will counter that by highlighting the fact that the team on Saturday was largely the same one that looked utterly out of their depth last year, and with the same results. Jason Pearce can call a spade a spade all he likes but honesty gets you nowhere in this game and both he and his fellow defenders looked shaky and disorganised.

The midfield three was totally ineffective and looked unable to get a grip of the game at all, with the knock on effect being that the forward three were chasing around with no aim or end result. Not exactly confidence building stuff.

Plus, opting to play Noel Hunt instead of Smith was a gamble that didn’t pay off for Hockaday. While some will sympathise with Hunt and credit his resolve to keep going, the fact remains that he seems incapable of scoring goals in a Leeds shirt.

While neither side of that discussion are wrong, it’s important to look at the bigger picture and look past the disappointing season opener. While ‘if’s’ bear no credibility in football discussion really, had we played well and lost then the mood would have been very different. It’s three points lost but there’s plenty of road ahead before things start to really matter.

Many will have been glaring uncomfortably into their smart phones as the Leeds line up was revealed an hour or so before kick off. However, it’s possible that Hockaday recognised the risks of throwing the likes of Benedicic and Cook straight in the mix, instead favouring the experience of Tonge in what was always going to be a tricky fixture. After all, it’s all well and good bringing in young and promising talent but the last thing they need is to be over exposed in their first game and end up suffering a bad defeat that would certainly damage confidence.

Bianchi would have started had he been able to, as would Morison; a player that is actually used to scoring goals at The New Den. Still, it became clear that if we are to stand any chance in games like that, we need to be controlling midfield and we never came close.

While the term ‘blessing in disguise’ feels far too blunt for the following point, one feels that this defeat might actually fuel Cellino’s desire for reinforcements. There are clearly still gaping holes in the squad, holes that won’t be filled by promising talents from Italy.

These holes need filling by established and experienced quality, a commodity that costs money, and hopefully Cellino recognises that.

While it’s never bad business to invest in the future, he needs to pump some cash into the here and now if we are going to achieve the step up in quality that’s required this side of Christmas.

He’s already claimed that there was £15m available to spend on the squad and by anyone’s loose calculations, there’s well over £10m of that still to play with. He needs to make a statement now by laying some of that down. After all, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.

What’s slightly concerning is the repeat of the Viviani situation but with the perhaps more important Sorensen deal. It’s difficult to know whether it is indeed a case of football agent mischief –making as Cellino has suggested or whether in fact Cellino is the one playing games in the negotiating room.

Either way, we can’t afford for any more situations where time and effort is invested in bringing these players over to England, having them train with the squad and virtually announce the deal as done, only for it to all come to nothing. Not only does it waste valuable time but it also sends out a message to any other potential recruits that dealing with Leeds United could be a waste of their time.

That aside, picking up various snippets of info that are coming out of the generally reliable sources on Twitter suggest we’re still chasing several targets and should see arrivals this week. It’s difficult to decide where the priority lies in terms of defence or attack as both were relatively impotent against Millwall, so both issues need addressing swiftly.

Personally I’d like to see the Cooper deal re-visited and dealt with. If he’s considered good enough to play for Leeds and solve the problem then he’s worth what Chesterfield are asking (believed to be closer to £1m than the £475k we’ve offered). Just get the boy in.

Nile Ranger was photographed in the stands on Saturday, looking decidedly conspicuous in a black hoody, smirking for the camera phones clicking around him. I’ve no objection to us signing him, as long as when we do it’s not considered to be a solution to the striker issue. He’s welcome to play for Leeds and try and do well, but he’s certainly not a ready-made replacement for Ross McCormack. Talk to me about Billy Sharp or Danny Graham and I’ll feel much more comfortable that the issue is being properly addressed.

In terms of outgoings, the strongest piece of Sam Byram related speculation yet suggests that he could be edging towards the door. It’s not the first time Premier league clubs have come knocking for him, but it is the first time his representatives have come out and said he’s interested in listening.

We’ve rejected the offer (from Southampton) but Cellino has already shown that, while there are principles in place, every player has their price.

Politically it would be a big own goal for Cellino if he were to sanction the sale of Byram, but evidence suggests that this decision will come down to how highly he rates the player and how much cash is on the table, not necessarily what the fans want.

Sense says that he will not be sold though. Everyone can see that the squad needs strengthening and letting Byram leave in no way could be seen as doing that.

Looking now to the fixture list and we have a game against Accrington Stanley on the horizon that hopefully should provide a platform for a decent response to the last match.

A convincing victory is what’s needed to set things up for the visit of Middlesborough; a game that will see the stakes raised much higher than Hockaday has seen yet.

The map ahead for Hockaday and his charges needs to include a decent performance and win in the cup game, followed by a rousing home win against Middlesborough. Deliver that and Millwall will be forgotten. Fail with either though and the pressure on Hockaday will increase dramatically.

It should be an interesting week ahead.

@jezaldinho

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