2007 - April

[El Gordo]

I know what you mean Andy. As an ex-Leeds fan they're one of the reasons I don't care about football anymore. Although there are plenty of others. A dose of humility won't be a bad thing for a club like Leeds.

On the flip-side the meltdown at Leeds is largely the responsibility of Ridsdale and O'Neil; and it seems wrong that there impact should be felt for such a long time.

I do sympathise -- up to a point (though I think you meant O'Leary rather than O'Neil..?). Sorry, I'd forgotten that you were a Leeds fan. In fact, I was almost a Leeds fan myself for a while. In my 13 years or so in Yorkshire I suspect I paid more visits to Elland Rd than Loftus Rd.

Yes, the current Leeds family are paying for the excess of their older, departed relatives, as it were. But that's the way it goes. The old Leeds gambled and sadly, they lost.

This is the main reason I can't stand Chelsea. Chelsea were another Leeds. They gambled in the same way, over-leveraged their assets just like Leeds, and were famously within a month of bankruptcy and possible liquidation before the sinister Russian and his mysterious 600 billion roubles appeared. That's what's unfair. I shouldn't take delight in the downfall of Leeds though I do think it's a fair outcome for their failed gamble. I just think that Chelsea should have gone the same way.

Incidentally, I've no doubt whatsoever that Leeds will be back in the Premiership within five years, and quite possibly three years. It's a tough punishment, but as with Man City, it'll be pretty brief.