Paul Merson reacts to ‘Mind-Blowing’ Leeds United development live on Sky Sports
With Leicester suffering yet another setback in their quest for promotion, Paul Merson called Leeds United “phenomenal” live on Sky Sports.
Having lost to Bristol City 1-0 on Good Friday, Leeds will have three points more than the Foxes at the top of the Championship table if they defeat Watford on Friday night (March 29).
The work being done at Elland Road and with Ipswich, Merson said the Sky Sports Soccer Special panel (29 March 14:35), was “mind-blowing” in response to the news of the outcome.
“Phenomenal, phenomenal job” he said.
“Especially Ipswich to be fair. Leeds have got the ammo, do you know what I mean.
“Leeds, they’re a big, massive club. No disrespect to Ipswich, but what they’re doing down there is mind-blowing in my opinion.”
Leeds United have dealt with expectation perfectly
Leeds was properly seen as one of the front-runners for promotion at the beginning of the Championship season.
Daniel Farke has done an outstanding job of ensuring that everything clicks, and the squad is incredibly powerful. Everyone knew they were more than capable of going up.
Although they started the season strong, Leicester was one of the favourites as well. However, in recent weeks, they have really struggled and are currently falling down the standings.
The team strength of Leeds United is evident, and as Merson points out, Ipswich should be given a lot of credit for what they have accomplished with a small budget following their promotion from League One the previous season.
Leeds is a huge club that should be in the Premier League, and they now have the advantage of automatic promotion back to the top division.
In a related development:
Leeds United: Daniel Farke must take decisive Daniel James action at half-time v Watford
Daniel James was chosen for Friday’s Championship match between Leeds United and Watford by manager Daniel Farke, who took a chance.
After missing the game-winning penalty as Wales lost to Poland, the winger was chosen to replace Willy Gnonto due to an injury three days earlier.
Farke chose to start James in the starting lineup at Vicarage Road despite the fact that his psychological impact from the penalty miss was massive.
It appears that Farke may be thinking about making a change at the half, though, given the way the first 45 minutes have gone.
Crysencio Summerville strike not enough for Leeds
Crysencio Summerville’s incredible goal was followed by goals from Vakoun Bayo and Emmanuel Dennis, which put Leeds behind 2-1 at the interval.
A lacklustre performance from James, who has been outstanding for Leeds this season, on the other flank was only made more apparent by Summerville’s flash of genius.
The only other visiting player with less touches of the ball than James during the first half at Vicarage Road was Patrick Bamford, with eight [Sofascore].
On the left side, Summerville, in contrast, had thirty touches and generally appeared like a bigger threat.
Just eight passes were attempted by James, and two of them were misdirected. Additionally, his lone cross was unsuccessful in finding a teammate.
Willy Gnonto injury timeframe revealed
Farke still has alternatives in the wide areas even without Gnonto in the lineup, which is likely to remain the case for a few more weeks.
With two weeks of training under his belt to be ready for this match, Jaidon Anthony is salivating at the bit and seemed like a solid pick right away.
The choice to start James, who is obviously not at all at all, was unexpected because Joel Piroe is another attacker who is begging for minutes and is perfectly healthy.
James must have an impact in the first few minutes of the second period if Farke does not go to his bench at the break. If he does not, something predictable will occur.
