Leeds’ Lord of the Rings? “One rule to bind them all…” Graham Smeaton September 6, 2014 Leeds United 54 Comments Everybody hates us – we don’t care! A phrase that often settles in the psyche of every Leeds fan and one that gives us solidarity against the ‘haters’ from outside our family. News emerged today, from YEP’s Phil Hay column ‘Leeds United: Cellino buys now, plans for tomorrow‘, that the frantic transfer activity during the summer transfer window, which closed at 11pm on Monday 1st September, was necesary ‘planning aforethought’ due to the financial situation at Elland Road. Cellino took over and restructured the debts that Leeds were incurring; this included month-to-month running costs of over £1 million! Totalled up, these debts were running far beyond the £8 million that Championship clubs are allowed to lose annually – with only £5 million of that being direct input from owners or shareholder losses. With that in mind, Cellino took to bringing in players with wild abandon; 15 in total being his final list of purchases which brings United’s squad to 34 players which includes 9 forwards and 6 centre backs. Cellino made some hard decisions: Thorp Arch was closed, ‘legend’ players were laid off from their match day hospitality duties and players were asked to bring packed lunches in their own ‘snap boxes’. The local Greggs saw a 4-fold rise in the sale of sausage rolls and sausage, bean and cheese pasties before Paddy Kenny left. Hay argues that Cellino has basically stockpiled players in advance of an impending, and expected, transfer embargo from ‘The League’. He states in his article, “Clubs that fail to comply will be subject to a transfer embargo,” the governing body states. “This embargo will come in to force ahead of the subsequent transfer window beginning on January 1, 2015.” Expectations are that there will be more than Leeds United punished in this way. My question would be: what about Premier League teams in debt? What about your Manchester Uniteds? What about your Manchester Citys?