YEP Jury: Leeds United need to bag their chances if automatic promotion’s the goal

DAVID WATKINS

We can’t be sure whether defeat at Loftus Road was the end of something or the point from which something beautiful will develop; whether our season died there or whether it’s a turning point from which we’ll go on to glory.

My immediate thought after the game was “This is the end”; we’d lost a ‘must-win’ game to a side that had suffered seven straight Championship defeats, many to teams worse than Leeds. But, as always, a few hours rest and a glass or two of malt and I wondered whether that was too hasty. We’d actually played okay but missed good chances, gave away a preventable goal, and a bit of luck would have helped. A win against the Albion will put everything right.

It will be tough, Albion have lost just three of their last 18 league games since thrashing Leeds in November and they are well placed in the top four.

But Leeds probably don’t need to play much differently to how we did on Tuesday, except we have to finish clinically, defend stoutly and hope Lady Luck turns up.

Prediction: Leeds United 2 West Bromwich Albion 1.

ANDY RHODES

If Tuesday’s game was categorised as ‘must win’ then who knows how you’d describe this one. Following the laboured and lacklustre defeat at QPR, Leeds will need to pick themselves up from the canvas quickly.

The Whites couldn’t score on Tuesday but there were promising signs and, if they keep forging chances, the goals will come. Converting chances has been Marcelo Bielsa’s biggest concern, and with Patrick Bamford not up to speed, goals may need to come from elsewhere.

Considering the reverse fixture in November and Leeds’ current form, Albion’s combination of Dwight Gayle and Jay Rodriguez scares the living daylights out of me. But, make no mistake, that 4-1 hammering will still irk Bielsa and, in his true style, he will have analysed that loss and what went wrong meticulously.

If United channel the spirit shown in their last Friday-night game against Derby then they’re a match for anyone. We’re getting to the season’s business end; let’s hope Leeds hold their nerve ... It’s do or die time.

Prediction: Leeds United 1 West Bromwich Albion 2.

MATTHEW EVANS

Football seasons are always full of peaks and troughs, for any team, and it’s fair to say that Tuesday night was a trough for Leeds United.

The first time we have been outside the top two, having played the same number of games, for a number of months. The accepted narrative of the game seems to be that Leeds were terrible and have bottled any chance of going up automatically. Simple mathematics disproves the second half of that theory and I wasn’t quite as downbeat as some of the angry Leeds fans still in their seats as the final whistle blew.

QPR followed the blueprint of how to beat this Leeds side. Ride your luck, score a goal by any means possible and then stall the game until 90 minutes is up. United were good if wasteful in the first half and barely any football at all was played in the second.

Tonight, West Brom will be a completely different proposition and winning this game becomes even more important given Tuesday’s loss. But now is certainly not the time for giving up ... is it?

Prediction: Leeds United 2 West Bromwich Albion 1.

KEITH INGHAM

I don’t suppose I’ll make many friends saying this...Leeds United aren’t playing well enough (at the moment) to challenge the top three in the Championship table.

You cannot hope to be in with a chance of being in the top two if you fail to beat a team that had lost their previous seven games. Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat to QPR showed that, at the moment, the team is struggling at the wrong time of the season.

The main reason why Leeds didn’t take top place was once again their failure to keep a clean sheet and to hit the back of the net, the first time they had failed to score this season away from home. It was again where they had the majority of possession but couldn’t get the goals needed to win. Tonight brings West Brom to Elland Road and there is not much time to rest tired legs before they are asked to go against one of their main rivals.

WBA have a strong squad and, although they lost to Sheffield United last week, they will know that a win at Leeds will cut down the points difference to just one.

Marcelo Bielsa may need to ‘freshen things up’ with the likes of Gaetano Berardi, Stuart Dallas and Barry Douglas fit again. Despite Bielsa saying otherwise there are a few players who look like they are running on empty and may need a game or two out of the side. Berardi or Douglas could move to left-back, moving Gjanni Alioski further forward.

Leeds are certainly missing the energy of Kemar Roofe, Patrick Bamford may need a few more games to get back to match fitness. He’s had a few chances in the Bolton and QPR games but has failed so far to get a goal from open play since returning to the side after a lengthy injury.

It’s the ‘business end’ of the season and so far the team isn’t delivering and another slip up could end our hopes of automatic promotion. I’m afraid I’m already contemplating being in the play-offs and with the squad we’ve got it won’t be a failure but it will be a massive disappointment.

Prediction: Leeds United 1 West Bromwich Albion 2.

MIKE GILL

I’m not sure which was worse, seeing Leeds United dominate again only to lose by the odd goal to Queens Park Rangers or listening to some of the whining, whinging know-it-alls who claim to be supporters.

They completely ignored the fact that Rangers’ goalkeeper, Joe Lumley, played out of his skin. They were either at a different match to me or maybe things don’t look the same on the red button!

The pressure is getting to all of us and Marcelo Bielsa was rightly annoyed when asked if his side were running out of steam.

I agree with him. Irrespective of the disappointing result, you don’t dominate possession if you’re flagging!

Tonight we face the talented, free-scoring but unpredictable West Bromwich Albion.

I fear that the sell-out crowd might be a bit nervous so we need to keep up the barrage of sound.

As well as the three-point bounce back we need revenge for the rinsing that we received at the Hawthorns back in November.

Prediction: Leeds United 2 West Bromwich Albion 1.

SHAUN SMITH

There is a wonderful piece of radio by Guillem Balague: ‘How Leeds United Works’.

He has seen the best the world over but he came to work at Leeds. It is a fascinating insight and he concludes that it is too early to see a genuine Marcelo Bielsa team at Leeds. In talking to Liam Cooper, the skipper states, modestly and realistically, that as Championship players they are not without faults. If they were perfect they wouldn’t be playing in that league but the coach has improved the squad to a point where the players appreciate the project in which they are involved.

Leeds have a defeat behind them, one which caused anger amongst fans attending the game and on social media. The Argentinian himself cut a distraught figure in a Loftus Road corridor. He had witnessed a masterclass in frustration.

The game against West Brom becomes do or die, hope or despair but, in reality, the real challenge ahead of the club is retaining the services of one of the world’s best coaches.

What Marcelo Bielsa does is remarkable.

He has turned a club desperate to make the play-offs into one distraught at dropping out of the top two.

This is the toughest league in the world and we must be prepared to accept the possibility of disappointment.

There are no guarantees. Balague’s documentary confirms there has been a revolution at Leeds United. Promotion may come this year. We may win against West Brom and despair will turn into hope.

But what must be avoided is frustration and with that the urge to throw out the baby with the bathwater.

The biggest loss would be losing the coach.

Prediction: Leeds United 1 West Bromwich Albion 2.