Peter Lorimer likte mye av det han så under kampen:
By Peter Lorimer: On The Ball column
Published on Friday 3 August 2012 09:11
WEDNESDAY night was my first chance to take a close look at how Leeds United are shaping up for next season.
I made the trip to Norway to watch the 1-1 draw with Sandefjord and I was quietly impressed by the progress so far. I don’t ever read a great deal into friendlies but I came away with a few promising observations.
You couldn’t help but be encouraged by the way Leeds competed physically, especially in the first half. There’s a debate to be had about the standard of Norwegian football but Sandefjord are in the middle of their season and could win promotion at the end of it. They’re meaningful opposition at this stage of our summer.
But fitness was never going to be a problem. It’s never been a problem at any of the clubs where Neil Warnock has managed. The priorities for Neil as I saw them were to create a more compact and capable squad and to make sure that in most positions the team improved man-for-man.
On first sight, I already feel that we are stronger in the areas that made us weak last season. A defence of Paddy Kenny, Adam Drury, Jason Pearce, Tom Lees and potentially Lee Peltier looks more than adequate for the Championship. It looks like the sort of unit a Championship manager would be happy to keep together from the start of the first league game to the end of the 46th.
And in front of them, the centre of midfield is a different proposition altogether. You’ve got a fit Michael Brown in there, along with Paul Green and David Norris. At some stage in the next few days, Rodolph Austin will be present and correct and I can tell you that we heard good things about him in Norway. Aside from the fact that he’s a hard, competitive midfielder who will put himself about, the general feeling is that he’ll be better suited to English football than he was to the Norwegian game – and it’s fair to say that he did very well over there.
What I saw at Sandefjord was an extremely solid spine, the basis of a good team as any manager will tell you. I’m not going to claim that the players I’ve mentioned are edge-of-the-seat signings but you’re looking at a core of lads who know our division inside out. Experience, nous or whatever you want to call it – it’s there in spades through the heart of the team.
But in saying that, I’m reluctant to start shouting the odds. While I’m confident that Neil will get his squad together, I don’t think for one minute that he’s quite there yet.
Selling Robert Snodgrass wasn’t part of the grand plan and it’s up front where the team looks weakest. Yes we’ve got Luciano Becchio and it’ll be a bonus if Ross McCormack stays. I was also impressed by Andy Gray’s strength and movement against Sandefjord. But of the two or three major deals that Neil’s looking to complete, at least one of them has to supply more goals and more creativity in the last third. That’s what Snodgrass brought to the team and it’s what we still need.
In a way I think it’s easy to under-estimate the pressure that Neil’s been under. This hasn’t been an easy summer for him – or for anyone at the club if we’re being honest. I’m sure it’s been non-stop for the chairman and Shaun Harvey and no different for the potential new owners who people are taking about.
All the same, a hell of a lot of hard work is bringing things together. A lot now rests on Neil landing the few targets he has left. If he struggles to do that then I think even he’d admit that he’s a bit short of what he needs to be right up there this season. But if he pulls this off – and from speaking to him I believe he will – then I’m convinced that we’ll be right in the mix.
Many of you will remember that I spoke with confidence about our prospects before the beginning of last season and ultimately that confidence was misplaced. But I still stand by my view that the biggest problem last season was not the lack of quality of experience – as much of an issue as that was at times – but the sheer number of players who were tied to the club without being properly involved.
When Neil first took over, I read a great newspaper article written by him in which he said ‘half the battle of being a good manager isn’t about looking after the players who are playing. It’s about about looking after the players who aren’t.’
You need skill and experience to do that properly, something I honestly don’t have. If you threw me in at the deep end at Thorp Arch and said ‘manage this squad’, I wouldn’t have a clue. I’ve never been in that position and I never wanted to be. It’s a job best left to those who know what they’re doing.
Over time, I believe that Simon Grayson will go on to be an excellent manager but I didn’t feel that the atmosphere was at all right last season. The lads on the fringes of the squad never seemed too happy. It was part of the reason why we went for Neil – someone who’s been there and done it; promoted no fewer than seven times. It’s all about the here and now for him and he can see how much we all want promotion. He’s embraced that passion from the start.
No doubt this summer’s been tough going but he still looks calm and collected, like he’s got everything in control. He’ll know himself that a happy camp won’t win you promotion if you don’t have the standard of squad you need and that’s why the next few weeks will be so crucial. But he’s shown already that managing a club as big as ours is no problem, even when the job’s far from plain sailing.
So I’ll save my predictions and take a view on our strongest team when the first day of the season is here. It would be arrogant and presumptious to say for certain that we’re going to go up and I don’t think now’s the time to talk like that. But I got that little buzz in Norway; that little buzz which makes you think good things are happening.
http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/latest-whites-news/lorro-getting-a-buzz-from-norway-1-4799521
