A Year in Review: Leeds United

2020 saw perhaps the greatest year in the recent history of Leeds United, as the club stormed the Championship and returned to the Premier League after 16 long years out. 2021 was a very good year for Leeds, bringing the climax of the Bielsa project and seeing Leeds secure a 9th place finish in our first season back in the top division. 2022…well, let’s talk about it.

2021 - 22

The year began with an almost false dawn, with back-to-back wins against Burnley and West Ham providing only temporary positivity. We signed off 2021 by fielding an utterly decimated squad against Arsenal, only to lose two more first team players to injury in our subsequent two wins. Given this, our failure to bring in any additions to the first team in January not only represented absolute negligence on the part of the board but also meant the writing was on the wall for the manner in which our form would fall off a cliff after this point.

We would only earn 1 point from the next 6 games, handing 6 points to relegation rivals Newcastle and Everton, and we’d concede 3+ goals in 5 successive games. This dismal run of form would unfortunately bring the end of the three and a half year spell of legendary head coach Marcelo Bielsa. It was undoubtedly a devastating way for such a glorious spell in the club’s history to come to an end and the fact many fans felt Bielsa had earned the right to see this relegation battle to the end, even if it did culminate with our relegation, represented the enormity of this call by the club.

In came former USA-assistant and Red Bull product Jesse Marsch, who promised to build on the high-pressing model of football while building a closer, more motivational relationship with the players. Despite a stuttering start in his first two games, the side soon found their feet under Marsch, going unbeaten in their next five, We’d rediscover a chaos factor in this time that would prove to be the difference in the run-in, finding consecutive stoppage-time winners against Norwich and Wolves, in the latter coming from 2-0 down to win.

Having looked all-but-safe, four abject performances from four admittedly unfavourable fixtures would plunge us right back into the battle and we would find ourselves in the relegation zone going into the final day. Leeds’ gave a good enough performance on the final day, and luck would play into our hands, with Burnley giving away a very silly penalty and Brentford going down to 9-men, and Leeds would ultimately survive relegation with a 2-1 win, courtesy of a stoppage time Jack Harrison winner.

2022 - 23

This season started very promisingly by all accounts. A routine win in the League Cup was partnered with 7 points from our first 3 games in our third season back in the Premier League, meaning Leeds United found themselves 3rd in the League for a whole week. Remember that? When we were 3rd? Was nice for a bit that. Rodrigo was firing, our new signings were settling in, Jack Harrison and Pascal Struijk were reaching new heights on the left side and it all looked good.

Then came the inevitable plunge down the form table that we should be used to by now. Teams seemed to work out that they could render us ineffective by breaking up play and time-wasting as much as possible, leading to several frustrating results, infuriating refereeing displays, and a lack of discipline for the club that saw our head coach earning a straight red card, something that would have seemed unimaginable during the Bielsa years.

The plunge in form saw 5 games without a win, before we faced league-leaders Arsenal at home. It looked like the trusty chaos factor, in a first half where everything seemed to go wrong, might help Leeds earn an unlikely result. Despite a 1-0 loss, a very strong attacking performance Leeds brought the ill-judged “if we play like that next game” arguments Leeds fans often find ourselves making after a promising display. If the 2021-22 season taught us anything, it’s that no, we will not play like that next game.

Come two uninspiring defeats to make it eight winless games leaving Leeds 17th in the table, with Marsch looking like he was done. Perhaps the World Cup break looming on the horizon played into Jesse’s hands, presenting an opportunity to arresting the slump in form. But what do Leeds do when we’re the most out of form side in the league? We go and beat the 2nd best club in the country away from home. We followed up a 2-1 win against Liverpool with a 4-3 win against Bournemouth which showcased the best and worst of Leeds United, but ultimately left the club in a much healthier position as we headed into the break.

Leeds now enter 2023 on the back of two defeats at the hands of Tottenham and Manchester City, in which Leeds gave good accounts of themselves while showing their defensive frailties, before redeeming themselves with a well-earned point and more-surprisingly, a clean sheet against Newcastle. We attempted to stay up on the cheap last January, and we had to rely on a final-day win to keep ourselves in the division. Repeat this this coming January, and we might not be so lucky this time.

Defence: 2/10

Leeds were conceding an ocean of goals prior to Bielsa’s departure, and though the losses may look more palatable under Jesse Marsch, we haven’t exactly seen an influx of clean sheets either. Just the five clean sheets across the whole year, becoming the first side to average two-goals conceded per game over a year in the top-flight for over 30 years, is a damning indictment of our defensive abilities over a prolonged period of time. This shouldn’t be taken as an attack on our defensive players as either as many, particularly goalkeeper Illan Meslier and defender Pascal Struijk, have given good accounts of themselves time and time again, only to find themselves left vulnerable by systematic shortcomings.

Our man-to-man marking system under Bielsa had been studied by oppositions, and a lack of player fitness meant it was easy to exploit, and under Marsch, a very narrow system has seen wide player after wide player find themselves in acres of space arriving into the box, giving away embarrassing amounts of chances and contributing to a high amount of goals conceded. Addressing defensive frailties, be it through new signings or a system adjustment, is key to Leeds’ survival in the second half of the season.

Attack: 7/10

What can I say, it wasn’t our defence that kept us in the league. Our attack has not been perfect by any means and Dan James playing the latter half of last season out of position as a striker should be evidence of this. Leeds have always shown themselves very capable of creating chances at all times, but in the first half of the year, some of our wins came courtesy of commanding individual performances, often by Raphinha or Jack Harrison.

In the new season, we saw the Jesse Marsch system working a lot closer to how it was intended. Rodrigo became the attacking figurehead we’ve wanted to see him as throughout his time here, new signing Brenden Aaronson showed his worth in winning possession and driving forward with the ball, and younger players such as Luis Sinisterra, Sam Greenwood, and particularly Crysencio Summerville, all showed their productivity in attacking for Leeds.

Signings: 7/10

As always, the main criticism is gonna be that there weren’t enough of them. A lack of signings in January, an unwillingness to even entertain the loan market, and a refusal to bring anyone in unless countered with another player leaving left us in dire straits approaching the end of the season.

The signings we did make in Summer were almost entirely positive. Star signing Luis Sinisterra has already shown his quality on countless occasions, midfield signings Marc Roca and Tyler Adams have complimented each others games fantastically, while Brenden Aaronson has shown himself to be almost the perfect player for the Jesse Marsch system.

Full back Rasmus Kristensen has over time adapted to the league and shown his strengths, while an under the radar deadline signing of Wilfred Gnonto has been perhaps the most impressive of them all. Acquiring an 18-year-old Italian international for €4.5mil who would be instrumental in successive match-winning goals, while being without doubt our best player in games against AS Monaco and Manchester City, is an exceptional piece of business, providing a player fit for the now, who doesn’t fear any opponent, and can have a brilliant career to come if he continues on his current course.

Player of the Year: Raphinha

Second place would have been Tyler Adams, which is a testament to both players’ performances that they were each only here for half the year respectively. With all respect to the Leeds squad, Raphinha was a cut above anything we’ve seen at Elland Road for a whole generation, and it’s no surprise to see him currently playing for Barcelona and representing Brazil at the World Cup.

Many highly-talented players may have downed tools as the collective performance of the side declined and declined, but there was never any doubt as to how devoted Raphinha remained to the cause. Inspired performances contributed to essential wins vs West Ham, Norwich, and Watford, and he was willing to get stuck in any way he could, even if it meant taking long-throws and playing as a wing-back against Chelsea.

Raphinha not only deserved but one could see that he wanted a move to a Champions League club, and there’s no doubt he would have secured whatever move he wanted whether Leeds went down or not. However, Leeds’ relegation would have made this move much simpler and cheaper for the buying club, suggesting that Raphinha may have been wise to sit back on the final day and let whatever happens, happen. Instead though, he took the game by the scruff of the neck in the second half, winning a penalty which he then converted under immense pressure, helping Leeds survive relegation. The enduring final images of Raphinha, him celebrating amongst the travelling fans, followed by marching on his knees across the stadium in a display of thanks for his wish of Leeds’ survival coming true, should be testament to his unwavering devotion to the club and for how honoured and lucky we were to have him as a Leeds United player even if just for 2 seasons.

Young Player of the Year: Illan Meslier

He is still only 22. It’s baffling at times to think about, yet his maturity to bear bad result after bad result, and still keep providing clutch saves at key moments is an enormous asset to Leeds. He was incredibly unlucky not to make the French World Cup squad, and his performances against Liverpool and Bournemouth are testament to his worth to the side. Any time you see Leeds recover from a deficit to draw or win the game, it’s very often down to Illan Meslier’s work that that deficit was prevented from becoming insurmountable.

Goal of the Year: Gelhardt vs Norwich (H)

Everything about this goal was just so incredibly satisfying. Last minute winners are always enjoyable and the scenes. of the dugout as the goal went in was a sight to behold. This. goal was about two fantastic moments - Gelhardt, having just been brought on to offer something more going forward, immediately leaps to meet a Meslier goal kick that he had no right to win, heading through a perfect ball that puts Raphinha through 1-on-1. Raphinha’s composure and foresight in the dying seconds of the game to bring the ball round the goalkeeper before laying it on a plate for Gelhardt shows the quality of his footballing brain. Joe Gelhardt’s joyous and uncontrolled celebration for this goal was just the icing on the cake.

Honourable mentions:

• Pascal Struijk vs Brighton (H) - The headed finish was nice, but this goal was all about Joe Gelhardt low-key providing one of the greatest assists I’ve ever seen.

• Luis Sinisterra vs Brentford (A) - Impeccable skill, brilliant finish, just technically brilliant. It just felt wrong to give goal of the year to a goal scored in a 5-2 defeat.

• Crysencio Summerville vs Bournemouth (H) - Another goal that was all about the assist and this was rock-and-roll football at its best. As Leeds clear a Bournemouth free-kick, Gnonto receives the ball in our own half and evades two challenges, sprinting all the way with the ball into Bournemouth’s chance before perfectly laying the ball into the box with his weak foot for Summerville to fire past the keeper.

Game of the Year: 3-0 vs Chelsea (H)

After 12 losses from 12 games against top 6 sides in the previous season, Leeds wasted no time correcting that record this time round. Despite an awkward start which saw a Chelsea goal disallowed, Leeds grew and grew into the game. Aaronson’s persistence was a nightmare for the Chelsea defence, Koulibaly in particular, before he robbed keeper Mendy of the ball while closing down, allowing himself an empty goal to roll the ball into. Leeds doubled the lead quickly after, Rodrigo getting his head on the end of a rare well-worked free kick to score our second, and Leeds’ high intensity, spearheaded by Tyler Adams, while our front 4 swarmed Chelsea’s central play, provided chance after chance while shutting down any Chelsea attempts to get back into the game.

This trend continued well into the second half. Struijk gave a mammoth performance in left back, at one point winning back possession which ultimately set up Jack Harrison to score the goal his performance deserved. Leeds continued to harass the Chelsea defence, with Koulibaly seeing a second yellow at 3-0 down. This was the magnum opus, this is the case for what Leeds under Marsch can produce when everything goes right, and the goal is now to get as close to these sorts of performances as we can.

Honourable Mentions:

• 2-4 vs Manchester United (H) - Sure, some of you might make the argument that we lost, fine, but I’d argue that this was just one of the most thrilling games of football we’ve seen in years, a fitting addition to the Leeds-Manchester United rivalry, the loudest Elland Road could possibly be, and Rodrigo’s goal was intentional, despite what many, including him, might say.

• 3-2 vs Wolves (A) - I didn’t watch this game live. I’m so glad I didn’t watch this game live, my heart would not have coped. Being able to watch this full game back, knowing the result that lied at the end, was a 10/10 experience, and Leeds’ belief once Wolves went down to 10 men to know the game was there to be won, even at 2-0 down, was something to be celebrated.

• 2-1 vs Liverpool (A) - Just when you’ve given up all hope, Leeds go and do something like this. Leeds’ back four and particularly Meslier had produced stellar performances to keep Leeds in the game, while all throughout, Leeds showed themselves capable of producing chances. In the end, not only a shock win, but a deserved one.

Worst Game: 0-1 vs Newcastle (H)

Admittedly not the worst performance from Leeds this year, but just a severely unpleasant experience all round. Leeds went into this game on the back of 2 wins while Newcastle couldn’t buy a win, and where the two clubs stood then compared to now shows how much of a turning point this result was for both clubs.

The game showed a pattern that was consistent throughout the season by that point, Leeds failing to take advantage of having the most possession and the best chances, slowly allowing the opponents back into the game, and once Newcastle managed to score courtesy of a poorly-defended free-kick, all the wind was taken out of the Leeds sails and we failed to create anything meaningful in response.

The beginning of the end for Bielsa and a game that produced one of the most toxic online atmospheres Leeds had had in a while, exacerbated by the fact we had 18 miserable days of digesting this result while we waited for the next game. All in all, not fun.

Honourable Mentions: A Lot

Low Point: Departure of Marcelo Bielsa

The impossible slowly began to seem possible as Leeds’ form slumped, we began conceding the same goal over and over again, were failing to get back into games, and conceded 20 goals in just 5 games. The manner in which it was handled left a sour taste, with fans having to wait a long while in uncertainty between the news being leaked and having it confirmed.

The hasty manner in which Jesse Marsch was appointed and brought into the club showed Leeds did at least have a plan going forward (because imagine how futile it would have felt going from Bielsa to an interim manager). We got some lovely images and stories as Marcelo was able to meet with and say farewells to fans as well as the various staff at the club. One aspect that stings is that we’ll never fully know his side of the story, but it was and still is this ability to keep a low profile and avoid excessive media exposure, even when the world around him was so volatile, that made him such a captivating figure.

Yes we’ve sacked managers before, we’ve sold key and beloved players, all part-and-parcel of the Leeds United experience, yet none had ever left such an existential void as this. For three and a half years with Marcelo Bielsa as our head coach, it was almost as if we were playing a different sport to the rest of the country and following Leeds felt like it was about more than football.

High Point: 2-1 vs Brentford (A)

This was just really good, and brought a satisfying end to the Bielsa at Leeds narrative. As unenjoyable as the Premier League can be at times, relegation would have been really bad and would have left a crushing feeling if we ended up back at square one where we were before Bielsa came in, with three and a half years of incredible progress being undone in such a disastrous. Thankfully, Leeds did survive and though Bielsa wasn’t the one to see it over the line, it did mean his legacy and his greatest contribution to Leeds remained intact.

Football-wise, this was a strange experience. The quality of football on the day was pretty poor in truth, with the best moment in the first half an emphatic Gelhardt finish that was disallowed by VAR. We had an agonising wait for the second half due to a rule that stipulated that games directly impacting each other kick off at the same time. Though several mistakes in possession had gifted Brentford some dangerous chances, it was a Brentford mistake that lead to Leeds’ opener.

When Brentford went down to 10-men courtesy of an injury and no remaining subs, it all seemed too good to be true. Then, naturally, Brentford equalised, courtesy of long-time thorn-in-our-side Sergi Canos, who did at least have the courtesy to get sent off immediately afterwards with two yellow cards in quick succession. With Burnley 2-1 down, it was still the case that we’d survive the drop, but a goal at either ground could have changed that. It remained that way until stoppage time, with Leeds in a strange purgatory of not knowing whether to protect the all-important point or try and win the game, but our safety was all-but-confirmed as Jack Harrison’s low-drive from outside the box was deflected into the Brentford goal.

The following scenes were a grand explosion of joy after an incredibly rough season. Rodrigo was half-naked, we got one last hurrah with Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha who both looked set to leave, young stars Gelhardt and Greenwood played huge parts in staying up, Marsch achieved what he’d been brought in to do, and we came away with lasting positive memories of the lilac kit, despite all the pain we’d endured with it beforehand. A 17th place finish, sure, but it’s the emotions that make it memorable and are what the game’s all about. Let’s not do it again next year.