Leeds United celebrate promotion at Elland Road as captain-inspired U21s clinch play-off victory

The young Whites celebrated a belated promotion to PL2’s top flight with victory over the visiting Nottingham Forest on Monday evening. Goals from Georginio Rutter, Jeremiah Mullen and Kris Moore booked Leeds’ place in Division 1 for the 2023/24 season in what proved to be a routine conquest for the youngsters.

Leeds had topped the Division 2 standings for much of the campaign but were beaten to automatic promotion by Southampton who supplanted the Whites at the summit owing to their superior goal difference. As a consequence, Leeds’ star-studded young side were forced to battle their way through the circuitous play-off route, which saw Paco Gallardo’s side defeat Aston Villa and Forest at Elland Road in consecutive weeks.

Skipper Mateo Joseph played a starring role during Leeds’ crucial play-off triumph, scoring the team’s equalising goal against Villa in their semi-final encounter, but most importantly helped accommodate first-team striker Georginio Rutter by selflessly operating out wide in order to allow the Frenchman through the middle.

Joseph and teammate Darko Gyabi will join up with England tomorrow morning as they set off for Argentina to compete at the Under-20 World Cup later this month. Homegrown teenager Archie Gray is also set for international action with England at the Under-17 European Championships, while frequent Under-21s’ substitute Charlie Crew represents Wales at the same tournament.

A crowd of 12,632 were in attendance to see the jubilant Whites lift silverware at Elland Road, before the players posed for photographs, signed autographs and basked in their achievement with those situated in the East Stand Lower.

It was a night for collectors’ items as January signing Rutter netted his first goal in Leeds colours, while centre-half Mullen unleashed a stunning volley to give Leeds a two-goal advantage at half-time.

Fellow defender Moore added a third early into the second half with a bullet header from close range, aided by the guile and creativity of Sean McGurk and Charlie Allen.

Sam Allardyce, along with first-team staff members Michael Skubala, who successfully led the Under-21 side earlier this season, Robbie Keane and Karl Robinson were present alongside chief executive Angus Kinnear in the director’s box, sincere in their applause of the youngsters at full-time.

"It's a really good feeling. We want to be playing with the best teams week in week out,” assistant head coach Michal Pujdak said at full-time.

"So for us to be back where we belong with the quality of the academy programme that we have in place, I think it's really important that we go back to the Division 1 and give that experience to the players where they can compete with the best.”