Right then, folks. Let’s dig into that whole “key positions” thing at Leeds United. Heard everyone jabbering about it online, claiming different spots matter more. Figured I’d actually sit down and dig it out myself, using the games this season, see where stuff actually sticks.
First thing I did? Grabbed me laptop, piled up the match replays from Sky Sports – nothing fancy, just the basic replays. Wanted the raw feel. Loaded up the draw against Leicester. Just hit play and let it run, tried not to overthink it.
Starting Out All Wrong
My head was tellin’ me, “The fancy attackers, mate, that’s where the magic happens.” Been hearing it for years. Bamford, Rutter, Summerville – all the talk. So I focused proper hard on Summerville whenever he got the ball. Saw him skin a defender, cut inside. Blimey, he’s got quick feet. But then… end product? Cross hit the first defender. Shot ballooned over. Felt like energy without punch.
Same with Gnonto later in the match. Electric run down the wing, crowds roaring… then a complete nothing pass into space where no one was. Ended up back with their keeper. Felt a bit deflated. Was I looking wrong? All these tricks, all this pace, but the final bit… poof. Smoke and mirrors.
Flipped the replay on to the loss against Ipswich. Still had attackers on the brain. Saw Rutter pick up the ball deep. He does that clever turn, gets past his man. Looks good! Then… holds it too long. Tries another trick, loses it cheaply right in the middle of the park. Their lads were right on him like flies. Ipswich broke. Boom. Counter-attack, goal a minute later. Real “uh-oh” moment.
Kept watching games: West Brom loss, Southampton loss. A pattern slapped me round the face:
- Lost the ball high up? Immediate pressure and panic backwards.
- Ball bouncing near our box? Pure chaos every time.
- Opposition waltzing through the centre? Happened way too easy.
Shifted Gears – The Ugly Bit in the Middle
Said bugger it to the fancy stuff for now. Rewound them tapes, ignored our forwards, focused smack bang in the middle. That holding midfield role. Ampadu trying his heart out, all effort. But watching him, truly watching… it was mad. He’s trying to do three jobs:
- Covering gaps left by the full-backs pushing up (Rodon wandered off, Gray got caught out way too much).
- Trying to tackle anything that moves.
- Spinning around picking passes while someone’s breathing down his neck.
Single bloke. Impossible ask, felt like. Saw Ipswich’s goal again: Ampadu pulled out wide cos Byram got turned inside out, nobody filled that hole in front of the centre-backs. Wide open motorway. They drove right down it. The anchor was stretched thin. Didn’t have enough cover.
Then the centre-backs. Oh, mate. Rodon and Struijk are big lads, decent defenders individually. Watched Rodon win a cracking header against Armstrong in the Southampton game. Strong. But together? Looked like two fellas met five minutes before kick-off. Organising? Pointing? Hardly. One pushes up, the other drops. Huge gaps between ’em. Saw Bamford actually jogging back to yell at ’em to squeeze up once! Forward telling defenders their job? That screams trouble.
Goal after goal showed it. Cutback across the box? Bodies everywhere, no structure.
What Actually Showed Up
All that digging left me with this mess:
- Single Holding Midfielder: Essential. But if they’re isolated like Ampadu often was? Like building a shed on quicksand. Needs proper protection.
- Centre-Back Organisation: Not just tackling or heading. It’s the pairing, the distance between them, who steps out when. Pure teamwork. Ours was shambolic too often. Calm heads? Rare.
- Connecting Midfield: Nobody consistently linking that solid base to the flashy forwards. A player? A system? Dunno yet. But the ball bounced harmlessly around midfield constantly. Dead space.
The attackers? They ain’t unimportant. But seeing Rodri at City? Kante used to be? Makes you realise: that protective shield, that calm, bossy centre-half partnership – that’s the damn bedrock. Without it being solid as hell, your fancy forwards are just expensive decorations on a sinking ship. Seen Leeds ship soft goals for fun this season. The fixes gotta start deeper. Simple as that.
