Leeds United’s exciting Under 23s continue to be part of Bielsa’s plans

A trip to London has not been something to look forward to as a Leeds fan for many years now, and our Valentine’s Day fixture at the Emirates was no exception.

It has been over three years now since Leeds’ last win in the capital which came in a 3-1 win over QPR in December 2017.

The reason for our capital curse is anyone’s guess, but – especially given the fact that we now play our home games on a pitch from Tottenham – we had better break it quickly.

The majority of the game on Sunday was tough to watch as the squad struggled to find a way through Arsenal’s press. The necessary reshuffle of the entire defence caused by

Phillips’ absence had a noticeable effect as we allowed the home side to run away with a four goal lead.

The team found their feet somewhat towards the end of the game however and managed to claw back two goals to keep the match competitive right up to the final whistle. Niall Huggins added his name to the ever expanding list of young players that have made their debut under Marcelo Bielsa as the Under-23s continue to feature in Bielsa’s plans. Huggins had a very solid debut under difficult circumstances and didn’t look out of place for a second on the night.

This current Under-23s group provide plenty of reasons to be excited for the future at Leeds as they are top of the league in their Premier League 2 division by a considerable distance.

The fact that first team players are often included to keep up their fitness is undoubtedly a part of this, but especially in recent fixtures the senior names have become more sparse and the results have continued to be positive.

There was some positive news for the Trust this week too as we were shortlisted in the “Lockdown Heroes” category of this year’s Football Supporter’s Association Awards.

This was in recognition of our campaign for supporters to donate the cost of “A pie and a pint” to local foodbanks during lockdown which raised over £10,000.

The Trust is also delighted to announce that we will be working with Andy’s Man Club as our Charity Partner of the Year once again. We are immensely proud to have been able to support the work they do in aid of men’s mental health in the past year and we will continue to do so at every available opportunity in the coming year as well.

This week we received the sad news of the passing of Kalvin Phillips’ grandmother who Leeds fans came to know and love as ‘Granny Val’.

Our deepest condolences go out to Kalvin and all of his family at this difficult time.

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

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

Marching on together.