IN LEEDS WE TRUST: West Ham game had a similar feel to our Championship losses

It was never going to be a night where luck was on our side.

It wasn’t long before that became obvious as the length of Helder Costa’s kneecap denied us the opening goal, and within minutes we had the ball in the back of the net once again - this time the ball had run out of play before Raphinha’s cross.

The West Ham game had the same sort of feel as many losses we saw in the Championship under Bielsa as chances were created but wasted only for us to concede a cheap penalty and a direct set piece goal.

But there were certainly positives to be taken from the game, not least the fact that Kalvin Phillips, Rodrigo, Poveda and Berardi all found themselves back in the squad after suffering absences due to injury.

If the injury room continues to empty at this rate it will be interesting to find out how Bielsa sees his strongest XI.

In our next game, Chelsea will arrive at Elland Road looking a little bit different to the last time we saw them as our old friend Frank Lampard is no longer at the helm.

Under their new manager, Chelsea are in much better form, having gone unbeaten for their last twelve games.

But this season we have a luxury that we have never had before when playing under Bielsa - and that is that we can afford to lose sometimes.

A game against an in form Chelsea side that spent more than £200 million in the summer is a free hit if there ever was one.

Last week’s meeting with club CEO Angus Kinnear also proved to be very positive as many of you who are members of the trust will know from the detailed overview that was emailed out to you this week.

Plans for season ticket renewal, the return of fans to games and potential stadium redevelopment were all discussed at length, along with a number of other topics.

Amongst the most notable points that were discussed was the idea of a ticket exchange where fans unable to attend a game could sell their ticket back to the club for onward resale.

Additionally when discussing the idea of Elland Road’s redevelopment the idea of a ‘Safe Standing’ section was confirmed as being within the prospective plans.

After years of campaigning for an area of the ground with rail seating suitable for standing, the trust is absolutely delighted to see that this work is likely to bear fruit.

We at the trust continue to take pride in our work to ensure that the voice of the fans is heard by those in senior positions at the club.

This kind of open communication is one of the ways that we can help to keep the values of the club and the fans in alignment.

Adding your own voice to the trust’s work is easy.

Visit our new website, which can be found at www.lufctrust.com, and you can become a member for just £10 per year.

Marching on together.