English Football Needs A Successful Take Over Of Leeds United

It may seem a strange thing for a West Ham fan to say, especially a West Ham fan who has confessed a loathing for everything associated with Leeds United, but there's no getting away from the fact that Leeds belong in the Premiership and their protracted absence is a blight on the English game.

Of course we all enjoyed it when Leeds dropped first from the top division and then into the depths of the third tier of English football - how could anybody who had witnessed the hideous arrogance and thuggery of the Revie era feel otherwise? - but enough is enough; sooner or later you have to forgive and forget and say, they have paid their dues, now Fate give them a break.

And for that reason, I became a tacit supporter of Leeds when they were battling to get back to the Championship. Who can forget that epic performance against Man Utd and who, with anything approaching a heart, would have wished them to miss out on promotion that season? In fact, as hard as Leeds fans may find this to believe, I posted congratulations when promotion was secured and predicted a return to the Prem in three years:

http://thegamesgonecrazy.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/well-done-leeds.html

The trouble is, with Master Bates keeping his money, like a teenager's magazines, safely under his mattress, Leeds are in a cul de sac. King Ken's plan was clearly to use Warnock to motivate a pack of yard dogs into winning promotion before selling out to the highest bidder. The trouble is, Warnock cannot work miracles - his QPR and Shafting United teams had quality players in a number of key positions, something which will not be true of Leeds after the probable summer defections. So this take over really could be make or break time.

And I hope it is for real. I know I have expressed doubts and have teased, and I will probably keep doing so for as long as Leeds are floundering, but I accept that Leeds are a huge club with a fantastic fan base and that the Prem needs Leeds as much as Leeds needs the Prem. So, through gritted teeth, I say, "Let's hope this bid is for real". Let's hope the Master Bating ends and that we see a return to the full fledged fckers that are Leeds United. It won't be pretty, it won't be enjoyable, but the medicine is necessary and I, for one, will grimace and swallow it for the sake of the English game.

Come the end of the season, I actually want to be posting, "Welcome Back Leeds United"!