Wasteful Leeds squander opportunities for opening win

Good Morning. It's Monday 12th August, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road...


Wasteful Leeds squander opportunities for opening win

Leeds squandered multiple opportunities to start their 24/25 campaign in style, settling for a draw against newly promoted Portsmouth at the weekend. Leeds bullied the Championship new boys in the opening minutes, rocking the woodwork three times in quick succession, before Ogilvie dragged Dan James down in the box on the 10-minute mark. When Struijk duly obliged from 12 yards out, few would have expected the game to end in stalemate, but as we have learnt in recent times, if you don't take your chances, you're gonna get punished.

Whether Leeds took their foot off the gas, or Portsmouth worked their way back into the game is up for debate, but the Whites found themselves 2-1 down at the break. Sorensen beat Meslier at his near post (23mins), followed just before the interval with a Lang piledriver from the edge of the box.

Gnonto restored order shortly after the break, and it stayed that way until injury time, when Jayden Bogle grabbed Saydee around the neck from within the penalty area. The man in black had little choice but to point to the spot, and once again Meslier managed to dive out of the way of the ball, handing Lane his brace.

Leeds response was instantaneous. Arronson showed poise and skill to work an opportunity before wrong-footing the keeper, but then fluffed his lines two minutes later dragging his effort agonisingly wide with the last kick of the game.





More Casio than Rolex

The cogs may be turning, but we're certainly not seeing the well-oiled machine necessary to take the Championship by storm. Farke's side worked 22 openings at the weekend, scoring just three. Their wastefulness in the final third, whether it be bad decision-making (shooting at an angle where the player hasn't got a hope in hell of scoring at) or lack of poise (or skill) in front of goal, continues to haunt the Whites.

You look at the bench. There is not a single player that wouldn't make the starting line-up for the majority of Championship sides - so where is it going wrong? Leeds may have a £60m bench, but why haven't they got a first team player capable of taking a decent free-kick or corner? The Whites had twelve corners (to Portsmouth's zero) and only looked like scoring once.

Rothwell was bought to ER as a squad player, but is probably the best at set-pieces. If this is the case, we surely need to bring in an upgrade - someone capable of delivering good balls en masse. Gruev was unlucky not to register against Portsmouth; a few inches lower, and we could have been looking at an early contender for goal of the month; but he doesn't do it consistently.





Rak-Sakyi bid puts Rowe deal on ice

Leeds have launched an official bid of £15m for Crystal Palace starlet Jesurun Rak-Sakyi according to respected journalist Alan Nixon. The 21yo was expected to have signed for the Blades last week on a season-long loan, only for the deal to have stalled at the last hurdle. Southampton tried their luck with a £7m bid earlier this Summer, only for the Eagles to insist that they would only consider a loan move. Money talks, and if Leeds throw enough money their way, perhaps it will make a difference?

Where does this leave the Jonathan Rowe deal? The Norwich winger refused to play at the weekend, in a desperate bid to fly the coup; but is his destination Elland Road or the French Riviera? Marseilles too, are strongly linked with the England U21 star, and are the only side to have registered a formal offer thus far!