Page 13 - We Are Going Up: YEP LUFC Premier League Promotion Special

Monday,July20,2020 www.yorksliireeveningposi.co.uk YORKSHIREEVENINGPOST I 13
STAVING OFF PREMIER LEAGUE INTEREST IN ‘YORKSHIRE PIRLO’
BEATING
BRENTFORD
UNITED FOLLOWED their
PHILLIPS
WHILST THE importance
of Leeds United’s summer
recruitment proved crucial,
keeping hold of class act Kalvin
Phillips was always going to
prove top of the list in terms of
the club’s transfer activity.
Phillips had enjoyed an
outstanding first season under
Bielsa with the Academy
graduate taking on a more
defensive mantra and making
the holding midfield role his
own.
It was absolutely no
surprise that several
Premier League clubs then
came knocking for Phillips’
2009-10: AN END TO THE THREE-YEAR
NIGHTMARE IN LEAGUE ONE
services during the summer
and Aston Villa’s interest in
particular proved well
documented.
Sheffield United
were also keen
yet despite
receiving
multiple bids in
excess of£20m
from clubs in
the country’s top
flight, United and
Phillips held firm and the
sigh of relief that the Yorkshire
Pirlo was still a United played
come the closure of the
summer transfer window
could be heard all around
Leeds.
Better still, Phillips then
signed a new five-year
contract in October,
again stating
that his long­
term dream had
always been to
take Leeds United
to the Premier
League.
Mission
accomplished and after
an even better second season
individually under Bielsa, a first
England call up will surely be
next.
opening weekend victory at
Bristol City with a 1-1 draw
at home to Nottingham
Forest who took a point
despite having
just 32 per cent
of possession
before Leeds
resumed
winning ways
with a 2-0 success
at Wigan Athletic.
You wouldn’t have
known it at the time but a
key automatic promotion
rival was next with the
visit of a Brentford side
featuring former Whites
defender Pontus Jansson as
their captain following his
summer switch from Leeds
to the capital.
Brentford had long since
looked a decent side going
forward but issues at the
back had previously cost
the Bees dear with Thomas
Frank's side finishing 11th
the previous season and 10
points off the play-offs.
Much better was in
the offing one year on
and United’s 1-0 victory
against the Bees in August
would prove a key result in
ultimately keeping Brentford
at arm's length in the long
run. Eddie Nketiah came off
the bench in the 77th minute
before bagging the winning
AMIDST 16 years of hurt,
the 2009-10 campaign had
a happy conclusion as Leeds
finally waved goodbye to
three years in League
One.
United lost
the services
ofanother
hugely talented
Academy
graduate in the
summer as Fabian
Delph was sold to
Aston Villa for £6m but
crucially Beckford stayed
and Patrick Kisnorbo proved
a key recruit. Leeds began
the season with six-straight
wins and by New Year’s Day
were top and 11 points clear
of third. Then came a famous
SETTING THE TONE WITH OPENING WEEKEND ROMP AT BRISTOL CITY
LEEDS BEGAN the 2018-
19 campaign as somewhat
unknown quantities under new
boss Marcelo Bielsa but it was
rather different the second
time around with the Whites
clear favourites to win the
division.
United looked solid enough
in pre-season which included
games against Manchester
United and Western Sydney
Wanderers followed by a
trip to Sardinia for a 1-1 draw
against Serie A side Cagliari
Calcio. But even as title
favourites, there were plenty
began their season with a
Sunday clash at Bristol City
following the departures
of Pontus Jansson
to Brentford and
Bailey Peacock-
Farrellto
Burnley with
Kemar Roofe on
his way out to
Anderlecht.
There was,
though, a familiarity
to the Whites starting
XI at Ashton Gate with only
Brighton loanee Ben White
making his debut and Leeds
fashion with a 3-1 blitz of the
Robins thanks to goals from
Pablo Hernandez, Patrick
Bamford and Jack
Harrison. Costa
made his debut
as a 76th-minute
substitute and
United were
instantly up and
running with the
Whites winning
four and drawing one
of their first five games
before a first defeat followed in
the 1-0 loss home to Swansea
City - for which revenge was
DREADED SEVENTH
AFTER THREE years in League
One, Leeds began life back
in the Championship but life
without Jermaine Beckford
who moved to Everton
as part of a busy
summer that
saw boss Simon
Grayson sign a
new three-year
deal and land
the likes of Ross
McCormack and
Kasper Schmeichel.
The campaign began
with a 2-1 loss at home to
Derby County but Leeds
surroundings and the 2-0 win
at home to QPR on December
on December 10 left United
second. It looked like being
play-offs at worst but
a haul of two points
from a possible 15
in April cost Leeds
dear as Grayson’s
side had to settle
for finishing the
dreaded seventh,
one place and three
points off the play­
offs. United, though, had
nonetheless made a strong
return to English football's
of question marks as United
began the season in impressive
sweet 11 months on.
goal four minutes later.
quickly adapted to their new
second tier.
M WHS
2007-08: MINUS 15T RAPID START
BUT YET MORE PLAY-OFF PAIN ■
WITH KEN Bates still at the
helm having bought Leeds
back under a new consortium,
United then learned they
would start life in
League One with a
15-point deduction
for not complying
with insolvency
rules.
Yet by
September 8 the
entire deficit had
been wiped out as
Leeds began the season
with seven-straight league
wins, going unbeaten until
November when they fell
to a 3-1 defeat at Carlisle
United.
Immediate promotion
looked imminent but Wise left
for Newcastle United in
January with Wise
replaced by Gary
McAllister but
a poor start to
the new year
cost Leeds dear
meaning a fifth-
placed finish and the
play-offs. Carlisle were
overcome in the semis but
more play-off pain followed
with defeat to Doncaster
Rovers in the Wembley final.
2008-09: MAC SACKED, SIMON I
GRAYSON, MORE PLAY-OFF WOE
THE EMERGENCE of striker
Jermaine Beckford had been
a feature of United's first
season in League One and
during the summer
of 2008 another
fine goalscoring
recruit arrived
in the shape of
Luciano Becchio.
But a
campaign that
began with high
expectations and
promise quickly went
sour as Leeds lost five games
in a row in November and
December including a 1-0
defeat in the FA Cup second
round at non-league Histon
and 2-1 league reverse at
home to Colchester United.
After the 2-1 league
loss at MK Dons,
McAllister was
sacked with Bates
then appointing
Simon Grayson
who steered the
Whites to a fourth-
placed finish and,
once again, the League
One play-offs.
Once again, though, more
misery followed with defeat in
the semi-finals to Millwall.
2010-11: BACK WITH A BANG BUT
. \
^
victory at Manchester
United in the FA Cup
only for United to
then wobble in the
league. Yet five
victories from
their final seven
games topped by
an epic 2-1 success
at home to Bristol
Rovers finally sealed a return
to the Championship in the
second automatic promotion
place.