Leeds United and the transfer windows

In my years as a Leeds fan, and especially the last 3-4 years I have wondered why our transfer windows seem to start in November/December or May/June and when the window really opens NOTHING HAPPENS. This winter is no different, we have been linked with a lot of players of various quality, next up probably Torres who is rumored to be sold during January? Loads of players have been linked away from Leeds as well, either in January or on free transfers in the summer – so what will happen?

Howson, Snodgrass, McCormack and Becchio are the four Leeds players that the media is heavily linking with moves away from the club, Howson is out of contract in the summer, Snoddy and Ross in 2013 and Becchio signed a new deal last year and are tied to the club until 2014. I don’t really believe that we will sell any of these players as they are seen as valuable if we are to gain promotion, if any I think that Ross might leave in a deal seeing Andy Keogh join the club on a permanent basis, a deal which I can’t really see good sense in, Ross is a goalscorer and Keogh is a worker, and we already have one of those in Becchio, but the difference between him and Keogh is that Becchio actually scores goals every now and then.

If we are to sign a player in the window I hope we can find a defensive midfielder to help Howson be able to get forward, a role he did ever so well in during last season. So instead of spending money on players who can’t strengthen the team, especially if/when promoted, I would love to see Leeds spent money on extending the contracts of the players that we already have, players who we can actually use when we get into the Premier League.

The Leeds pub guide! Part three

So it is time for another part of the Leeds pub guide, I've been busy grieving over the loss of Gary Speed, but felt that now was the time to write on!

The horse and trompet The Headrow LS1 6LR Leeds

A nice little pub in the middle of Leeds and actually one of the last places we found SKY Sports on the screen. The beer are pretty cheap, £2.45 for a pint of Carlings, and on mondays even cheaper (£1.79), there is a decent selection of beers and also quite a few cask ales.

There is also food served and it tasted pretty good, even if it took a little to long to get it served.

My rating (out of ten)
Beer selection: ******
Food: ******
Service: ******
Atmosphere: ******
Prices: ********
Jukebox/music played: ******

Yates's 24–28 Boar Lane LS1 5DA

http://www.weareyates.co.uk/leedsboarlane

Let me start out by saying that this pub have got some ridiculous offers on food, actually it is grotesquely cheap to eat in there!

The pub is split in two with a lower and upper floor, upper is mainly for eating and below people party before going out.

The is 11 different beers and every day they have different offers on those aswell so the place is certainly worth a visit, we practially ate/drank in there every day.  The prices on beer and food varies from around £1.50 for the pint on sale and £3 for a complete meal, so if you've spent to much shopping, this is the place to dine.

Yate's is a chain of pubs so you can probably find one in each big city in England.

My rating (out of ten)
Beer selection: *******
Food: ********
Service: ******
Atmosphere: *******
Prices: **********
Jukebox/music played: *******

The Grove Inn, Back Row, off David Street, off Water Lane, LS11 5PL
http://www.thegroveinn.com/

This was without a doubt my favorite pub of the ones I visited on my last trip, a bit small and with many smaller rooms attached it semmed a bit weird the first time we arrived. But after spending a few hours i there we fell in love with the places, a bit of darts, the fire in the fireplaces or the owners dogs running around? Don't know what it was but it just felt like a real old english pub like you saw in tv series in the 80's (in the best possible way).

A pint of Carling cost me  £3.35, but the real treat in this places was the selection of cask ales, they had everything you could imagine, and the barman even let me try a few out before deciding which one I wanted - while taste trying we had a great talk about the vikings and other historical themes, simply brilliant!
This is the first place I will visit the next time I am in Leeds. It's a bit hard but I encourage you to try hard - located between the Hilton and Bewley's hotel, most people will pass it on their way to Elland Road.

My rating (out of ten)
Beer selection: **********
Food: N/A
Service: **********
Atmosphere: **********
Prices: ********
Jukebox/music played: ********** Actually deserves more *'s!

That is all from my pub guide, we did visit more pubs, by either we didn't stay long enough or Søren was to drunk to take notes. I hope that people going to Leeds will find this helpful and visit the pubs that I rated! MOT! 

Leeds United - Millwall December 3rd 2011

Saturday will be another emotionel day for fans of Leeds United, our first home game since Leeds legend Gary Speed sadly passed away last sunday - I am hoping for a bumper crowd a ER and even more for a great goodbye salute to Speedo.

Our opponents are rivals Millwall, known to be complete morons and famous for waiving Turksh flags and singing anti Leeds chants, but hopefully they can behave and help us give Speed one last cheer.
Millwall are in 17th and hopefully we can push them further towards the relegation zone and in the same moment start a good home record. The main player to keep and eye on is Darius Henderson, who is their topscorer with 8 goals, but apart from him there is not much else about Millwall to worry about.

Leeds showed everyone that they belong in the top 6 with a great 4-0 away win in Nottingham on wednesday and hopefully we can now kick on and get into top 2 before x-mas. Both Howson and Becchio got in the goals on wednesday, and I think Simon Grayson will play the 451 again tomorrow. Andy Lonergan is still a doubt, but back in training so hopefully we will soon see our nummer 1 back in the team, and apart from him there is not to many injury problems to report, SG will probably pick the same 11 that did ever so well on Wednesday, if he chooses 442 he will swap Michael Brown with McCormack I guess.

The most important thing about Saturday will be the half time goodbye to Gary Speed though, Gary McAllister, Gordon Strachan & David Batty, Speedo's midfield collegues from the championsship winning side will be at ER to say goodbye to their friend, so another emotionel day to follow for the fans inside and outside of Elland Road.

Hopefully we can win another one for Gary and I predict Leeds to win 3-0 with goals from Becchio, Snoddy & McCormack!

I hope everyone inside Elland Road will do their best to give Gary Speed the "sent off" he truely deserves! RIP GARY SPEED - WE WILL NEVER FORGET YOU!

Goodbye to a true Leeds United legend

This Sunday Leeds United lost one of their true greats, football lost a great ambassador of the game, and worst of all a family lost their son, husband and father.
Gary Speed chose to cut his life short, the reason is unknown and actually not that important, no matter the reason why we won't ever get Gary Speed back.

I began following English football when I was about 10-11 years old (90/91) but didn't manage to find a favorite team before around 1994, the team I chose wore white and came from the north, the team was Leeds United, they weren't really that good and didn't really win that much - but they had a few players I thought were cool when they were shown on TV in Denmark. The coolest of the bunch was the flashy left winger Gary Speed (when Yeboah started playing the fascination grew even more). One of my earliest defeats as a Leeds fan came on the day when I learned that Gary Speed had been sold to Everton (certainly didn't help my sadness that we spend the transfer money on Lee Sharpe!) - I had read books and been told stories by older Leeds fans about the pride of playing with home grown players so I felt we had lost a great deal when Speedo left us, however nothing compared to how I felt on Sunday when he left us all for real.

I was sitting on my couch in Denmark yesterday listening to the live coverage of the away game in Nottingham, and I must say that I have never been more proud of the team I chose to support all those years ago, to hear the Leeds fans sing tributes to Gary Speed was so moving and the fact that the team, staff and club responded so brilliantly was fantastic. The way Simon Grayson and our players and fans have behaved since learning the tragic news on Sunday makes me even more aware that we have a fantastic club and the best fans in the land.

I hope Gary Speed have now found the peace he couldn't find here and that everyone associated with him in any way will always cherish the many great memories he gave us - Rest in Peace Speedo, You will never be forgotten! M.O.T

Nottingham Forest - Leeds United 29th of November 2011

Leeds United will play an extremely emotionel game tomorrow, just two days after learning that club legend Gary Speed had taken his own life, the whites are on the road in Nottingham.

I must admit that I actually can't find my usual desire to write this game blog, football seems so unimportant when a young life is cut short, so I won't get into to much details about our opponents, our squad or anything else. The thing I want the most tomorrow is for the fans to give Gary Speed a tribute and salute him throughout the 90+ mins.

Leeds will win 1-0 tomorrow and Lloyd Sam, wearing Speeds number 11 will score the winner!

Rest in peace Speed! We will remember and miss you forever! MOT

Burnley - Leeds United 19th of November 2011

After my week long trip to Leeds followed by an international break Leeds are back in action on Saturday.

Leeds return to the place we celebrated one of our biggest successes last season, the 2-0 to 2-3 second half turnaround.
Burnley have lost their two November games so far and find themselves in disappointing 18th in the league, their away form is horrible and their home form not much better actually, so I am ready to put my money on Leeds tomorrow.
Burnley still have a pretty decent squad, so no one really knows why they are doing so bad, and no one really cares, all that matters is that we give them another knock in the head come Saturday.

Leeds gave a great team response to the 0-5 defeat against Blackpool, by beating big spending Leicester 1-0 away, and Simon Grayson will be keen to see his team get another great win on the road. He will have an almost fit team to choose from, only Andy Lonergan and Mika Varynen is injured, and Paul Rachubka was last seen in Siberia. I am still waiting for SG to give Becchio the chance, and hopefully he will have impressed during the break and be able to start alongside McCormack tomorrow. Tom Lees also return after suspension, and Andy O'Brien who did ever so well against Leicester is also ready to try and make the starting spot his own, so once again SG will have a luxury "problem" in his defence. The midfield will probably still hold Howson and Clayton in centre and Pugh and Snoddy on the wings. Some LUFC "fans" have been making noise about the fact that SG should drop Howson, I have to say I don't understand these people. Jonny is playing a deeper play making role this season, so for people to expect him scoring 15+ goals is unrealistic, especially since he has got Clayton next to him, a guy who really likes to get forward, so haters, get of Howsons back!

I'll be ready on my local pub for the game, and predict a 2-0 Leeds win, with goals from McCormack and Adam Clayton (the 2nd best looking guy on the photo)

The Leeds pub guide! Part two

This time in the pub I will focus on the "Leeds United" pub in town! ENJOY!

Billy's Bar Elland Rd LS11 8 Leeds

Let's start the guide at Elland Road, the club legend Billy Bremner have given name to the clubs bar/meeting point before and after games.
Always filled with Leeds on game day, but also worth a visit if you are just out in the shop getting new stuff.

The are many beers avaiable and the cost around £3.10 for a pint, so actually quite cheap when you consider the it is Ken Bates who owns the bar! There is also a good food selection, I am always pleased to find a place that serves all day breakfast, and you can choose two meals for £10 among them lasagne, pastas and the great breakfast plus more.
Billy's is also the place where John McClelland gathers people before the great stadium tour (£15), that is also worth a go!

My rating (out of ten)

Beer selection: ******
Food: *********
Service: ********
Atmosphere: **********
Prices: *******
Jukebox/music played: ****

The Old Peacock 251 Elland Road, Churwell, Leeds LS11 8TU

Next up is a place with so much LUFC history that I can't even begin to describe it - The old peacock just across from Elland Road.

If you have read books about LUFC from the 60's and 70's you will no doubt have heard about this pub, a place where Leeds fans gathered to hear/see the games and to this day a place where Leeds fans gather before and after games.

There is a big beer selection, and pint are a just £3, on game day they are only served in plastic glasses or bottles, apparently we would start throwing them around otherwise? (If Millwall came along, yes surely)
There is not that much else to say about this place, I can only recommend that you give it a visit when in Leeds.

My rating (out of ten)

Beer selection: *******
Food: N/A
Service: *******
Atmosphere: **********
Prices: *******
Jukebox/music played: ******* (best on game day with fans singing **********)

The Commercial Inn Sweet St West Leeds

Last recomendation this week is Peter Lorimer's pub, where else would you go to meet a true Leeds United legend!
It is a wonderful place, great dart board, great pints and always filled with Scandinavians in a great mood.
You can choose between 10 different beers and a pint of Carling will cost you £3, when living in the centre of Leeds there is no reason not to drop by Lorimers on your way to Elland Road.

My rating (out of ten)

Beer selection: *******
Food: N/A
Service: *******
Atmosphere: *******
Prices: ********
Jukebox/music played: *****

The next guide will feature my new favorite pub in Leeds, a little place called Grove Inn plus a few more, until then M.O.T