Clarke Carlisle came to Leeds, a club looking for esteem and a fresh start, as someone looking for esteem and a fresh start. The best qualified coach, and the brainiest footballer, and all the wrong moves at the wrong time.
-ista | a specialist, enthusiast or advocate of a belief or principle
Farke said, "We don’t have to over-analyse the game," and I hope he was lying ahead of a week spent over-analysing, over-thinking and overall tearing up plans, finding a solution for a better Leeds team.
As Red Bull's energy football goes out of style, it's leaving frantic, effervescent players like Brenden Aaronson marooned on uncertain, shifting terrain, trying to learn what RB never taught them.
Wood was hard for Leeds fans to warm to. Genial enough but lacking some note of charm, he looked like a wanly smiling tree when all fans could see was the murky forest.
This game almost produced one of the goals of the decade. It's just over twelve years since the last one, and just about the only chance I'll get to compare Brenden Aaronson, favourably, to Rudy Austin.
According to UEFA live television coverage was being requested by seventeen countries. Leeds were ready to turn the 4-0 scoreline from six weeks ago into motivation for sweeping the Blaugrana out of Europe.
Whyte's skills had been polished in the States, and he started his Leeds career by dribbling past two Scarborough players and shimmying around the goalie to score. More important, though, was his impenetrable consistency alongside Chris Fairclough.
Not taking three points from this relegation rival means those three points will have to be taken from better teams later. So Leeds need to become an even better team, soon, if they can.
O'Leary's babies had not, yet, dug into and ground out one of their Champions League matches. Travelling, working and getting the result were signs of maturity as long as you remember that growing up is boring.
The acts of persuasion that Howard Wilkinson and Bill Fotherby used to tempt Chris Fairclough to Second Division Leeds United must rank among the greatest lobbying feats in football history.