Are we no longer the big fish in this division?

Its a good point that i agree with entirely. First and foremost its about how good your manager is and how must faith your owner has in him. Make no mistake Radrizzani has business contacts all over the world and the investment Leeds have coming in will mirror Wolves. Tie that to the fact they have an amazing manager who is a different level. There are no guarantees in football but i can see Leeds reestablishing themselves in the premiership now.

 

No pressure on us now we not in the same league really as the likes of Salford Mansfield and Bolton. They have owners who want to invest and progress. We have owner who not really like football and stuck with something he was roped into. Add the salary cap and this league is very different bar the three mentioned. I think we average club with a large fan base that means nothing looking at the players we just signed proves this maybe though the less pressure may work in our favour, look at Cheltenham last year no one but them probably expected how went. Looking at the squad at minute starting at upfront
Vaughan and Novak both can score given the service.
Donaldson and Guthrie target men one with experience no legs and other youth in his side. Unlike others Guthrie played one game then injured so how can judge yet. He may smash in pre season stranger things happen.
Motley and Ismail both can run at defense that's all ask
Pritchard and Clarke both could slot behind front two both could occupy no 10 role.
Midfield ??????? 2 or 3 rocks needed
Defense BRE and Anthony think strongest partnership with paudie and French as back up
Connor wood on left longridge ain't shifting him so needs more competition
Levi on right guessing no knowledge how good he is
O'Donnell hopefully without Hornby
No stars no pre Madonna s and see what happens

 

I don't know about Bielsa in the Premier League.

He'll need LOTS of investment, because his tactic of running his players into the ground isn't totally ideal...

It's very, very old school.

 

Where as we have people at the top driving anyone with ambition away sadly. Even if Leeds come back down any West Yorkshire derbies feel a life time away. Only a new owner and a complete shake up of our club can bring us back now imo. Or McCall some how performs Miracles.

 

Its the tactic every club with limited squad uses these days. Its why he asked his players to lose extra weight. Worked for Sheffield utd. Pretty well as their league position belies.

 

Well that's definitely one thing Leeds have done, used a tight, compact squad.

Part of me thinks they benefited from the break, part of me reckons they would have gone up anyway - but under the Premier League spotlight... I dunno... if the players maintain their professionalism like Wilder's United, then they'll be fine. If morale drops, though, which it could easily do, they'll wash out next season.

It's going to be interesting, but at this point, nothing's off the table - top half finish, or last - I wouldn't discount any of it.

 

I think they'll get the first season momentum, no one up there really knows who they are. Its whay my gut reaction tells me Sheffield utd will struggle next season. The high pressure tactic does rely on your backroom sports scientists being on the ball every week, a drop in energy levels or a key injury will soon see the big guns take advantage.

 

Yes it's like anything else you make poor appointments you suffer, ironically Cellino reminded me very much of a Rahic type of owner the appointment of Dave Hockaday was never going to work.
Looking back over there managerial appointments since David O'Leary left they have had 25 different managers/coaches in charge some with very good pedigrees but they didnt workout for Leeds.
I dont envy their promotion to the top league they could always attract money people, even back in the Revie era they had the likes of Sam Bolton, Manny Cussins, Les Silver, Bill Fotherby, I believe most were wealthy businessmen from Leeds, who knows what the future hold we may even get new owners in the future ?.

 

You don’t envy their promotion to the top league? Yeh me neither....

 

The ironic thing is it was Huddersfield saving themselves that got Leeds there

 

Were talking big clubs and there were few bigger than Wolves back in the day, they were a team who like most can fall on hard times, the difference is there are usually people with big money prepared to take a risk on clubs like Leeds, Wolves, even bloody Bournmouth.
Stephen Morgan life long Liverpool fan bought Wolves for £1 ? I believe, but could never get the right mix , the present owners have done a great job at Molineux and their manager as with Bielsa has the team playing the right way with regards football.

 

I mean it, I've no axe to grind with Leeds they have a section of morons but which club haven't, as some have said I cant see them being around the relegation spots I do believe they have an owner who can generate finance, unfortunatly they will be a force in a few years and I can see them possibly challenging for a top 6 place in 3/4 seasons, IMO a big factor will be BIesla staying hes 65 later this month in the past he's been there and done it so how long will he commit his future to Leeds and when he does go they need to bring the right replacement in.

 

This is what irritates me about City....we love having an inferiority complex. People talk about Bolton and immediately I know we’ll suddenly think we’re inferior. To me they’re a similar sized club to us and certainly nothing to be afraid of.

But I think we’re a similar size club to jokers like Swansea, Huddersfield, Burnley, Barnsley, Cardiff, Stoke etc, but apart from a brief spell in the 80’s and under GR in the late 90’s and early 2000’s we’ve always liked to revert back to feeling inferior.

when people talk about Mansfield, Salford and Forest Green as though they’re some kind of galactico’s I know it’s down to our old Love of inferiority

 

This topic of discussion, as others have mentioned, is bizarre and has been brought up several times.

What I will say is this... People out here ask me about Leeds and how big they really are. I always say it is somewhat a myth how big they are. They're a one-club city. However, so are we. The belittling of clubs like Salfords attendance is laughable when they have two of the most successful teams in England on their doorstep.

Let us face it; we're a lower division side, with a lower division outlook and we're not really that big.

While I am at it - videos all over twitter tonight of Leeds fans celebrating. At this point, I'm not even jealous. I'm just genuinely worried we won't ever see those heights again. City fans that are 30 will barely remember the premier league days. I'm not normally negative about the club - but it's a sad sad, albeit typical, situation.

I can’t tell if you’re agreeing or disagreeing with my point in regards to them being somewhat of a myth. Myth may be the wrong word.

For someone my age, they’re not a ‘premier league’ side. 16 years outside the top flight is a long time. They get 30,000 in a city of what, somewhere between 750,000 and a million people?

They’re much bigger then Bradford City - again I actually think we should be bigger for a one club city. But as people have alluded to everything about Bradford city and the city itself is slow and backwards. There’s no light at the end of the tunnel that I can see right now.

 

I believe Leeds are a big club, IMO they are far bigger than several already in the Premier League, Norwich, Bournemouth, Watford, Brighton, Crystal Palace, Southampton, Burnley, Sheffield United, Leicester City, and arguably West Ham, Newcastle, Aston Villa, but hay it's only my opinion, as you say I go back to the 60s with them and they were a very good team, they could handle themselves back in those days but so could the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal, and they could play football for all the comments about them winning stuff because they were dirty Leeds.

 

Two of only eight clubs who have never played outside the top two tiers

 

Suppose you can go back to what defines a big club. Either way - Bradford City is not.

 

We're nothing like those clubs you mention in the middle paragraph. The levels of funding at those clubs dwarfs ours, their history sees them playing at higher levels than us for prolonged periods of time.
This big club myth is amusing. In most of my life time I've seen city in the lower leagues playing to less than 10,000 regularly, people quote the likes of Burnley and Barnsley but they'll always be a level above us.

 

Big club means nothing, only to deluded fans.

 

bollocks. Where were Swansea and Burnley when we were in the premier league??

I started 84/85 season, 6-7,000 being the normal. Point being that apart from GR nobody has tried to take us forward and realise the ambition.

I’ve seen City away at Swansea in front of 3,000.