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Dominic Matteo: It is not all bad news at Leeds United
LET'S GET BEHIND THEM: Dominic Matteo wants Uniteds fans to get behind the side, especially at Elland Road, and help build a positive atmosphere as the Whites press for the play-offs.
There’s been a lot of doom and gloom at Leeds United in the past few weeks and I really do think things need a bit of a lift.
For me, it would be great if the fans got to the ground on Tuesday for the game against Birmingham City, which is a massive one and gave the team their full support to try and get us a result.
For the stake of the team and staff, we need to put whatever differences we have away during the game to get behind the team for the remainder of the season. If we do that, I think we can still have a real chance this season.
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When games have kicked off recently at Elland Road, the thing I’ve noticed is that stadium has been so quiet. That’s not Elland Road. Obviously, we know it isn’t full these days, but you usually can rely on the singing and the noise and the fans all getting behind the team and trust me, it makes a real difference.
As a player, when the crowd are buzzing at Leeds, it gives you such a lift and you feel 10 feet tall. When you start the game as a player and the stadium is dead, it really doesn’t help. The atmosphere against Ipswich for instance wasn’t great. Looking at it, the players have done nothing wrong and when they are out there on the pitch, there are trying their best and it would be nice if some fans put the off-the-field stuff to one side and got behind the team.
Lots of our players are young and some are on loan and they need all the support they can get. I do remember being a young player at Liverpool when the club were going through a rebuilding period when a lot of young lads were coming through.
Tough
At a club used to winning things, it was a bit of a change and the crowd weren’t always supportive and that was a tough time, especially as a young kid with fans booing and shouting.
That’s football at times and what I will say is that fans are always entitled to their opinions to say what they want and the game is a release for people.
But for the sake of the team, if we could just focus our energies on getting behind the team a bit more, especially early on in the game, I’m sure it will give the players a bit of a lift to spur them on.
When I played at Leeds and even when things weren’t going well for us, what you could say is that the fans were always great.
Players sometimes need a little bit of help. At the moment, it doesn’t look like many Leeds players want to get on the ball and make things happen. A bit of positive noise and cheering might give some of the young lads that little bit of confidence to get on the ball a bit more.
I do think we’ve gone a little long at times recently from back to front, rather than building up through the midfield. Whether that’s because people don’t get on the ball and there are a few nerves.
Let’s galvanise the players. Some do look a bit nervous from what I’ve seen. Not everyone, Snoddy has seen plenty of the ball and is always trying to do his bit.
But most of the others haven’t really had that confidence to get on the ball and dictate things as much as they can. Other midfield’s are getting on top of us at the minute rather than the other way around. And let’s face it, a lot of games are won in midfield. If we dictate to teams, we’ll win more than we lose.
At the end, even though we’ve not been playing great, we’re still in with a good shout in the Championship, having taken seven points from our last nine.
The league is very open and while getting the top two might be tough, I definitely think if we can keep the home form together and nick a few points away, the play-offs are a definite possibility.
We’re not in the worst position, to say we aren’t playing great, are we..?
We’ve obviously brought in Fabian Delph and I think Fab’s a great signing. He’s not had that much game-time at Villa recently, but I think he’s a fit lad anyway. He had a quiet game against Ipswich, but like anything, it can take a bit of time to settle again.
But he knows the place inside out and hopefully he can get us ticking. I think we needed someone like him who can go and get the ball off the back four and win a tackle and start attacks.
I’m sure there will be more business to be done still in this window. I don’t know that, but I am sure there will be.
The fans still want us to bring in a couple more players to get excited about, that’s for sure.
It’s alright bringing loan players in, but I do think the fans want us to bring in a few players for the longer term who will excite them a little bit.
* Sportingbet paid out some huge sums last weekend as hundreds of Leeds fans backed Ross McCormack to outscore Michael Chopra at 2/1 in the 3-1 win over Ipswich. Check out all the Leeds United season and match specials ahead of the Birmingham game at www.sportingbet.com and open an account for up to £100 in free bets.
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Comments
There are 44 comments to this article
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OzTyke
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 09:32 PMYes it would be lovely for everyone to cheer the boys on for the 90 minutes plus Fergie time every home match Dom. We are just one point off the playoffs so you'd think the place would be buzzing. Maybe some improved displays will get people believing again. Also Dom, I realize the players enjoy getting support but they are grown men not under 12s, and get paid handsomely to play a game. MOT
Jettatura
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 07:36 PMDom, you're a legend so nobody's got any beef with you or what your point is. But you've gotta see it both ways. The club should be giving the fans something to cheer about. What we've seen over the last few years is the squad continually being asset-stripped - we had a better 1st team (& squad) in League One - FACT!... Everything's being done on the cheap and playing assets are regularly being sold to maintain Bates' cash flow. If the club had ambition and wanted to deter other clubs from sniffing around our players then put them on improved terms. That way when Bates does sell them at least the club benefits. Instead we have the club consistently being behind negotiation breakdowns, blaming the players (who can't speak out publicly) then insisting on shipping them out at knockdown prices. Even then, where's the re-investment in the squad?... On top of all that he's then hit the nerve to ask for ST renewals - in January!... I tell you what, Ken YOU get your hand in your pocket and then so will I!... We need a chairman board whose agenda is in line with the fans. We need to spend more OF OUR MONEY on the 1st team, NOT the squad. Currently we spend less than 30% of turnover on football - what's the rest being spent on?... Come on Ken, it would take a relatively small amount spent now to get us up to the PL and a share of the riches - surely it's worth a punt?...
original koppite
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 06:20 PMNeil1964....You don't make comebacks, as we have several times this season and last, without having plenty of fight so your point is nonsense and it has been repeated by several of your numpty friends.
original koppite
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 06:08 PMGogol ...Attendances are down everwhere! It's to do with the recession as most normal people, which will of course discount the likes of Bramleywhite, SiBry and Dog, faced with the choice of feeding their children or going to a football match, will choose the former...... Yorkshirelad......My screenname refers to my first attending ER in 58 when I stood in the original kop as against the new kop!
we8csum
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 05:47 PMKB "if fans want premiership football they will need to pay premier prices" well ken we have kept our part of the bargain, when will you start delivering yours..?
Gogol
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 02:18 PMDom, I'll cheer Leeds on anythime. The question is: why are fans staying away from ER? Is it because the team are not playing well? No, of course it isn't. It boils down to Bates and insulting comments made by his like (see 16).
whitevanman1
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 01:54 PM37 PERSIB lol so true mate.
PERSIB
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 01:11 PM@whitevanman1, please do not inflict the posts of Leeds fans on your sister. She would have a field day on us, and would - as sure as eggs is eggs - end up as batty as this thread. No psychologist should ever have to face the illogical howling rage of ER. Remember the days when we were all convinced that Mawhinney had it in for us? I'm starting to think that ER is full of lunatics.
sarzman
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 12:52 PMAlways makes me laugh hearing all these sob stories like: "I've been a Leeds fan for the last x amount of years and never have I felt so ashamed..." REALLY??!! More ashamed than May 2004 when we were relegated from the PL? More ashamed than the SpringSummer of 2007 when we were relegated to the third tier of English footall for the first time in our history, forced to deal with administration to the point of near-extinction and were slapped with a collective 25 point deduction for our troubles? Wow, we must really have some suicidal supporters at the moment.... GET A GRIP AND SUPPORT YOUR TEAM!!!!
ELLAND BACK
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 12:44 PMoh and as for you dom, nice to know youre now on the payroll, lorimers lost all respect dont go the same way. the team have had plenty of support which is why they are as near to the play offs as they are, because it certainly isnt their ability thats got them there. Only way forward is for bates to sell and the only way that will happen is by the fans putting pressure on. see what happened with the ownership all of a sudden we knew who the owner was, because ken aquired the club (if you believe that changed out your dafter than you look), same can happen again but this time with him actually selling us before bleeding us dry and leaving us with the quietest hotel in beeston
ELLAND BACK
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 12:38 PMOO I Want bates out as much as anyone else but chanting against him is no good at all because he wont listen MWAH MWAH.........so what im going to do is chant bates name, say he saved the club and buy a new shirt every week because that will really put the pressure on him and soon we will be back in league 1 again, RA RA RA. IF YOU ARE ONE OF THE FOOLS COMING OUT WITH THIS SORT OF RUBBISH get yourself off to bradford or huddersfield as this club will do a lot better without you. BATES OUT
MPMLEEDS
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 12:24 PMI respect what Dom is saying here but he's forgetting the MAIN CORE ISSUE, which is the fact that we are in a recession and the tickets prices at ER are a disgrace!!! People cant afford to come see Leeds United at the moment, and by the looks of it they wont next season either! There wont be many that will pay an extra £100 on their season ticket for next season, because LUFC have decided that you must pay ONE MONTH after xmas to get your discount for being a loyal supporter!!!! - And why oh why have we not seen anything about this from the YEP!?!?! If ticket prices were slashed, i would suggest that there would be more people going to games and less chanting about off field issues and more support for the team!!! Then again its not about the team is it!???!?!?!?
Marti
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 11:55 AMDominic had a flea in his ear?
geezer
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 10:56 AMTICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK. Im afraid if no transfers are done by end of today that will it AGAIN. I can just here Larry now IT WAS FA CUP WEEKEND SO I DIDNT GET CHANCE TO SPEAK TO MANAGERS (EVEN THO HES HAD 3 WEEK PRIOR) WE HAD A GAME TUESDAY SO I HAD TO TAKE TRAINING MONDAY THEN BUSY WITH THE BIRMINGHAM GAME TUESDAY! Mark my words. MOT
StigM
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 09:32 AMI do see Matteos word here and I do understand what he is saying. The fact is that Bates do not care at all about the demonstrations outside ER, not at all. He just call us morons and his eyes do not want to see that is not a few that he claims it to be. I claim that the team is quite weaker than last year, this year is a golden oportunity as I see it, and Bates does not use thus great possibility. He an Grayson is just feeding us the same stories agian and again. Bates and SG has the responsibility for this situation, it all started with a failiure at the summer window where they walked in to a mine, very very bad job they did. Now we hear the same words again, you can not blaim people to have no faithe in these two guys. The footbal we play is simply worse than it has been for the last 3 years, it is NOT just a bad period, we are playing bad and have done so for 3-4 months, our tally is just great when looking on what we hae done on the pitch, it is based upon pure luck. This is a fact, and the luck will not give us a hand all season. The responsibility to get a better mood on ER is in Bates and SG hands !! The palyer do the best they can, but looking at our performance what does that tell us people ?? The quality is simply not there is it ?? So what do you do than, FIX IT !!!! This can only be done by Bates and SG !!!
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