In our recent Loan Watch piece we stated that, in a move that slipped under the radar, Mike Grella had returned to Leeds after his loan spell at Swindon Town.

It has now come to light that Grella requested to return to Leeds after feeling he was not been given enough games. Relegation threatened Swindon sacked manager Danny Wilson and replaced him with Paul Hart in an attempt to secure their League One future. Grella had started five of the seven games Hart has been in charge of.

On his Twitter, Grella said:

“I’ve decided to come back to leeds because under the new management I wasn’t getting games. My reason for joining Swindon was to help them…

and to also get games in…I want to say thanks to the Swindon fans for everything and know that I have a great respect for the club and…

all the people involved, I hope they stay up because they have a great group of lads and the club deserves to be up higher”

Paul Hart has hit back, claiming Swindon are “better off without” Grella, also saying “It’s amazing. It’s beyond me. We don’t need people like that.”

Having scored one goal in his seven appearances for Swindon and feeling his opportunities were limited there, it begs the question what he gains from returning to Leeds when he is clearly not a part of Simon Grayson’s plans for the rest of this season. Grella had allegedly refused to move to League Two Bradford City and had a move to Motherwell cancelled because he had already played for both Leeds and Carlisle earlier in the season.

It seems, unless he can find yet another loan move, he will spend the rest of the season in the Leeds reserves (providing he can make the team). I don’t mean to come across as if I’m not in full support of one of our players but you can’t help but think he hasn’t thought this through properly. His first team opportunities are going to be far more limited at Elland Road than they were at Swindon and it’s difficult to see what he will achieve by returning to Leeds at this stage in the season.

Though fighting a relegation battle in League One isn’t the most attractive proposal, surely it’s better for a young professional footballer to be doing that than playing in a Mickey Mouse reserve league. He had the opportunity to put in some real hard graft and try to dig Swindon out of the hole they find themselves in and become, like Davide Somma at Lincoln City last season, somewhat of a club hero. If it was simply a matter of a personality clash with Paul Hart or other Swindon staff, then his desire to leave could be understandable – if not, from certain perspectives, entirely acceptable.

Maybe he just didn’t like Swindon. Maybe he’ll force his way into the first team and be the catalyst for success in our promotion push though, with Somma and McCormack sitting restlessly on the bench, that seems somewhat doubtful.

Mike Grella has made a loan move to League one Swindon Town until the end of the season.

Grella had been looking for a club since his spell at Carlisle United where he scored three times in eleven games. He looked set to be on his way to Motherwell earlier in the season but the move fell through as the SFA refused to sanction the move as it broke FIFA regulations. The 24 year old American has however been able complete his move to Swindon.

With opportunities scarce for Grella at Elland Road this season, it should provide some much needed competitive football.

Mike will join a number of players with a Leeds connection at Swindon with ex-Whites, Jonathan Douglas, Dave Lucas, David Prutton and Alan Sheehan all playing at the County Ground.

We’ll keep an eye on Grella and report back in our loan watch.

Lubomir Michalik

Carlisle United boss Greg Abbott has admitted he doesn’t think the club will be able to sign Lubomir Michalik on a permanent deal despite a successful loan spell with the Cumbrian’s.

Abbott said Lubo is on a “really, really big wage” and whilst he’d love to make him a permanent addition by offering a salary that would make him one of the clubs top earners, he doesn’t believe it would come anywhere close to meeting Michalik’s demands.

After signing from Bolton Wanderers in 2008, Michalik went on to make 49 appearances for the Whites before falling way down the pecking order and being shipped out on loan.

The fact that both Leeds and Carlisle were playing in the same division when Leeds United gave Lubo his current salary in 2008 highlights the huge difference in financial resources these two sides have been between them.

You do however have to wonder just how high his salary is? At the time, it seemed like a major coup capturing a Premier League player whilst we struggled to escape League One, but it now seems Dennis Wise (the then manager) brought him to Leeds with some impressive financial incentives. As we saw at Notts County, the lure of money is much more important these days than the division you’re playing in.

At 27 years old, Michalik still has his best days ahead of him and Leeds United would be careless to let him go for free in the summer after lining his pockets for a season he played no part in. The best case scenario would be a transfer in January, but after spending the last few months on loan to Carlisle it seems unlikely that he’s going to have a line of managers queueing up outside Elland Road fighting for his signature.

Elsewhere, the future of Mike Grella hangs in the balance as Abbott also revealed he didn’t expect Leeds United to loan him back to Carlisle for the rest of the season.

With McCormack, Paynter and Somma not even guaranteed a place on the bench it seems highly unlikely that Grella will remain at Elland Road for long. However, it seems Simon Grayson is in no rush to decide on Grella’s future and is likely to weigh up his options before deciding what happens next with the American. A loan move or transfer seem the most likely options.

Two in two for Grella

Mike Grella
Bristol Rovers 1 – 1 Carlisle United

An 87th minute tap-in from Mike Grella cancelled out Chris Lines’ second half goal for the Cumbrians, but Carlisle will feel they should have left Bristol with all three points after missing a stoppage time penalty.

Mike Grella’s tap-in was his second goal in as many games with the American once again playing all 90 minutes for Greg Abbott’s side.

Squad list update

Last week I revealed that Mike Grella had been removed from the Leeds United squad list and questioned whether this meant his time at Elland Road was drawing to a close.

I contacted Leeds United the next day with regards to this matter and received a reply from Peter Lockwood, The Player Liason Officer at the club who explained Mike’s absence from the list is solely because of his current loan. I have replied once again over the weekend asking why other loaned out players remain on the list, but have yet to receive a reply. Even so, I think it’s fair to say I may have read a little bit too much into the situation!

Tom Elliot

It seems Ronnie Moore’s patience with Tom Elliot has finally ran out as the Leeds United striker was dropped from the squad completely for Rotherham’s game this weekend. Manager, Ronnie Moore has continuously blasted Elliot in the press since he arrived in Rotherham questioning the players commitment to overcome his injury problems. The Rotherham boss previously claimed the youngster had missed 40 training sessions for the club and was debating whether to send him back to Elland Road.

Tom Lees
Aldershot 1-3 Bury

Things seem to be going much better for defender Tom Lees who played all 90 minutes for League Two side Bury in their 3-1 win over Aldershot Town. Bury currently sit third in League Two, with just one point separating the top three and their manager expects more of the same telling BBC Radio that; “I don’t like to use the word momentum but we have it at the moment.”

Mike Grella

Mike Grella marked his full debut for Carlisle United with a goal against Charlton Athletic in a 4-3 thriller at Brunton Park.

Charlton had led the game 3-0, but Mike Grella’s 58th minute goal inspired a heroic comeback from the Cumbrians who scored three in less than twenty minutes to level the tie.

Despite the impressive comeback from Carlisle, Charlton still managed to take all three points when Paul Benson headed home a winner deep into injury time leaving Carlisle 8th in the table – a win would have put them level on points with Bournemouth who currently sit second in League One.

It was Mike Grella’s second game for Carlisle after making his debut from the bench in the 2-1 defeat to Exeter earlier in the week.

Grella’s vanishing act!

Meanwhile, back in Leeds, Mike Grella has disappeared from Leeds United’s squad list which could mean the writing is on the wall for the American, who has had little chance to impress since Simon Grayson took charge at Elland Road.

Leeds fans previously grew concerned about Davide Somma’s future when the editor of the official site failed to add his name to the list. With Mike Grella however, it’s an entirely different scenario as the American was already on the list so must have been removed by the editor. If it was just a case of him being on-loan, you’d expect Tom Elliot and Tom Lees to have been removed too, but the duo are still listed.

Elsewhere…

Tom Elliot’s loan at Rotherham United appears to be on the rocks after manager Ronnie Moore was less than complimentary about the striker’s ability;

“It’s a major problem for him and it’s one we’ve really got to look at. If he’s not going to contribute to us then we may as well send him back to Leeds. We need someone here that’s going to contribute to the team.

“Paul Warne came on last weekend and was magnificent and he’s 37 but runs round like a 2 year old while Tom’s 19 and runs around like a 40 year old. It drives me crackers really.”

The outburst which was broadcast live on Radio Sheffield appears to have been in response to Elliot’s failure to hit the back of the net in four appearances.

Elsewhere, defender Tom Lees appears to be having a much better time of things at Bury where he’s already scored for The Shakers and also picked up a couple of man of the match awards from his fourteen appearances to date.

Adam Clayton

21 year old Manchester City midfielder, Adam Clayton, has joined Leeds United on a month long loan. Clayton, an England U-20 international, spent last season on loan at Carlisle United, making 36 appearances and fans may remember him for scoring against Leeds in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy Area Final.

Despite Clayton usually being a more central player the length of the loan suggests he is being brought in to provide cover for the suspended Max Gradel and injured Robert Snodgrass and he could be in the squad to face Derby County on Saturday.

This addition comes a few days after the loan signing of youngster Sanchez Watt from Arsenal, signalling Simon Grayson’s intent to bring in young players from Premier League clubs. With chances few and far between for young players at Manchester City, Clayton should be looking to make a good impression for Leeds in the hope of securing more regular football.

Carlisle fans storm pitch after JPT shoot-out

Angry at the news Carlisle had got away without any punishment following the pitch invasion that saw three Leeds United players assaulted, I decided to email the FA for an explanation.

My email to them was as follows;

Dear FA, I’m absolutely outraged by the decision not to punish Carlisle for the pitch invasion which saw three Leeds United players punched and think it’s about time someone in your organisation took a step back and realised the full ridiculousness of it all!

When one of your own policies is to dock points to those member teams who are struggling with financial difficulties – often caused by yourselves as teams try to compete with the bigger ones, funded by Sky Inc. – to not condemn and punish the same teams when their fans assault the players you’re supposed to represent, the entire organisation really needs to get it’s priorities right!

Are we to conclude that the FA prioritise money over the safety of it’s players? My personal theory is that the FA only act when the media takes notice, and since Carlisle were the culprits here and Leeds United the victims, no one really cares. If this was the other way around, you’d be lining up at FA HQ to condemn the actions of Leeds United fans (as you’ve done many times in the past). The whole thing stinks of double-standards and serves only to further fuel my contempt for the people running our national sport.

I’m not holding my breath for a response, as I’m guessing the FA will follow it’s usual policy of hiding behind closed doors and issuing the kind of no comment statements I expect from 10 Downing Street. I feel I should warn you in advance that anything I do receive will be published on the Leeds United site www.thescratchingshed.com, where there are thousands of unhappy Leeds United fans once again angered by your organisations inconsistencies.

As you see above, I wasn’t expecting much of a response. Having followed football since birth, I knew they’d issue some vague statement reaffirming their actions. Like the one that follows;

Thank you for your email.

In cases involving crowd problems, The FA has to be satisfied that all reasonable steps were taken by the club with regard to crowd management. In this instance, we’re satisfied that the club did take all reasonable precautions.

Kind regards

The FA know this is absolute nonsense. When the pitch invasion happened, the stewards and Police were scrambling to safety, not once trying to help the Leeds United players off the pitch. Where exactly does that fall into their taking ‘all reasonable precautions’ policy I wonder? The people employed to ensure the safety of players didn’t fulfil their role because they were massively lacking in numbers and didn’t have the balls to do so. How the FA don’t see a problem with this is beyond me!

Not satisfied at all, but I felt the need to vent. I shouldn’t be surprised by the outcome at all, and in truth I wasn’t. The FA have failed once more as far as I’m concerned.

Following those scenes in February, I observed that ‘The stewarding, policing and protection afforded to our players following the JPT clash on Tuesday night was quite frankly atrocious.’ I felt that Carlisle had massively underestimated the potential for trouble at the game, and were undeniably at fault for the events that followed.

Not only were the numbers of stewards and Police too small to meet the requirements for the match, but the ones that were there did nothing to help the Leeds United players who were trying to get off the pitch. At the time, Richard Naylor was the most outspoken on this issue, quite rightly condemning the actions of those who were supposed to be there to prevent such situations.

In February, I concluded my initial rant by predicting the FA’s punishment for Carlisle would be pathetic or non-existent. Unfortunately, my prediction came true as the FA decided to put the matter to rest, claiming that Carlisle did everything in their power after the events to bring those responsible to justice. Strange, since the ones that were responsible are still being hunted.

What really irks me about all this is the unavoidable double standards of the FA. It’s something we’ve grown used to at Leeds United, but that doesn’t make it any more acceptable. My prediction that the FA would do nothing was largely based on the lack of media coverage. The FA have become the media’s plaything and only seem to act when there’s mass coverage and outrage about a given event. Since this was the Carlisle fans at fault, the media simply couldn’t care less, but I’d be willing to bet all my worldly possessions that if the boot was on the other foot, Leeds United would now be suffering the consequences.

It was the strange cycle of League One results that helped Leeds United clinch back an automatic place. Only a couple of weeks back, Millwall strolled to a 2-0 victory over Leeds United. Leeds finally got back to winning ways however with a win over Yeovil Town, so logic suggests that Millwall are better than Leeds, Leeds are better than Yeovil so Millwall should pretty much walk past Yeovil. Unfortunately for Millwall, logic is something that rarely applies to League One and it was only a last gasp goal that clinched them a 1-1 draw.

Leeds meanwhile had a much easier time of it as they exploited a weak Carlisle defence without the help of top-goalscorer Jermaine Beckford. Before Leeds registered their first goal, Max Gradel missed what was a great one on one chance v the Carlisle keeper and Richard Naylor had a header ruled out for what I assume was pushing in the box. Snoddy also had a chance to put Leeds ahead but blazed his shot high over the bar as Carlisle’s defensive pairing – which included former Leeds United left-back Ian Harte – struggled to cope. All this, and the clock had only just hit ten minutes.

Just a few minutes later and Leeds took the lead they deserved with Luciano Becchio opening the scoring. A free-kick from Snoddy looked easy for the Carlisle keeper, but he spilled his catch and Luci was on hand to give Leeds United the lead.

The game continued in much the same manner with Luci missing a chance that was easier to score and Max Gradel losing out on another one on one chance against the Carlisle keeper. It’s no exaggeration when I say Leeds United should have been four or five goals up by this point.

As we’ve seen so many times however, failing to take your chances usually leads to you being punished and there was no let off here for the Whites. Minutes before half time Ian Harte whipped in a powerful free-kick which was weighted perfectly for Richard Keogh to direct it home and level the tie at the interval. As bad as Ian Harte was in defence, he was Carlisle’s biggest threat elsewhere. His perfectly hit free-kick made it all too easy for Keogh to level the tie. 1-1

A frustrating interval for the Leeds United faithful who almost unanimously agreed Beckford would have had a hattrick by now. Although definitely out of form lately, it’s hard to believe he wouldn’t have had a field day with the endless chances Leeds United wasted and the sheer uselessness of Carlisle’s defence.

Despite the wasted chances of the opening 45 minutes, Simon Grayson stood by his starting line-up and was rewarded almost instantly when Max Gradel fired Leeds United back in front. Leeds pressed forward immediately from the restart and with the first proper attack of the second period a cross landed nicely for Gradel who headed home to put Leeds back in front.

Just three minutes later and the game was over when a ball from Gradel set Luciano Becchio free who slotted home to put the game totally beyond Carlisle’s reach with forty minutes left to go. Euphoria broke out in the away end with the Leeds fans fully aware of the score in Yeovil and sensing there may be more to come for the Whites. “Na na na na na na na, Leeds are going up!” A welcomed return for that chant.

The Leeds fans were now urging Luciano Becchio on to finish his hattrick and he was gifted the perfect opportunity but his header from close range lacked direction and was far too easy for the opposition keeper. However happy he’ll be with the two goals, Luci must be disappointed with the series of easy chances he missed.

The game kind of died off with Leeds comfortably in front and Carlisle posing little threat. Beckford and Grella got a bit of a cameo role with a couple of minutes left to play but this was probably more time wasting than anything else as neither had any chance to score with the team seemingly happy with the scoreline.

Can’t help thinking this should have been closer to a rugby score, but it was total dominance from Leeds. Three straight wins and back in the automatic spot so can’t complain really.

Leeds without Beckford

Hard to say we were better without him because Carlisle’s defence was pathetic and he’d have probably had a field day had he started. Some of the chances Luci missed were criminal, but not surprising as he’s never been the most natural of goalscorers (and may not be 100% match fit). I guess the major difference is that Luci relies on hard work to get his goals, whilst Beckford gets his with clever positioning and by playing off the shoulder of the last man. In this game, Beckford would have definitely been more effective, but in those games where the chances are few and far between, the hard-working partnership of Becchio and Gradel would likely pay off. A definite thinking point for Larry as the debate undoubtedly rages on…

TSS man of the match

Despite my criticism of his missed chances, Luci’s hard work paid off and he won us the game so the man of the match could be no one elses. I know it sounds like I’m yoyo-ing a bit here, but two six yard misses are hard to ignore. Still, he never gave up, kept his head high and sent us back to Yorkshire with three points.

Carlisle fans storm pitch after JPT shoot-out

Leeds United fans were understandably angered by the incidents at the time and the Football League’s failure to act hasn’t softened the mood. The FL do insist the matter is still under investigation but few will expect Carlisle to face any serious repercussions. Since it wasn’t the Leeds United fans at fault and the media didn’t pick up on it, it’ll be safely swept under the carpet and ignored.

Our lovable, media-friendly and totally uncontroversial chairman doesn’t seem to have helped matters much however. At the time, Bates was seemingly raging about the referee’s decision to have the penalties taken in front of their home support (as opposed to the neutral stand at the opposite end of the pitch) and also complained about laser pens being shone in the eyes of our penalty takers. None of these allegations were reported to the Football League however as a spokesman revealed;

“The League would only act on a matter such as this if it received a formal complaint from a club. In this instance we’ve had no such complaint,”

Sadly not the first time Mr. Bates has been all mouth, no action.

On the pitch, Carlisle United have absolutely nothing to play for sitting mid-table with no hopes of the play-offs and free of any relegation concerns. Their form however is pretty good, especially at home where they’ve won the last three consecutive matches. Overall, they’ve lost just once in their last six matches which was an away trip to Charlton.

Leeds United fans can take some optimism from Carlisle’s form against the top six. Of their ten matches against the top six in League One, Carlisle have only managed one victory and picked up just six points from a possible thirty.

Our last league meeting against Carlisle was back in September at Elland Road where Leeds United earnt a point rather fortuetously after being awarded a controversial penalty (which was missed and followed up by Beckford). Carlisle were also the last team to beat us at Elland Road before our unbeaten run which which went on for over a year.

The most recognisable face in opposition colours tomorrow will be that of Ian Harte, who has been in exceptional form for them this season, netting sixteen goals in forty-three appearences. As Leeds fans will remember, Ian Harte is deadly from set-plays and can always be a threat. 

Whilst Harte has always been an asset from dead balls, his defensive ability and pace have always been questionable. Leeds should be looking to exploit his lack of speed and acceleration with a pacey option such as Jermaine Beckford to play off his shoulder or Max Gradel to run at the ageing defender.

Simon Grayson has been calling for unity ahead of this game and for the fans to get behind struggling Jermaine Beckford. I agree with his comments entirely but suspect the ugly scenes at Elland Road won’t be repeated away from home where the atmosphere is generally much more supportive and less critical of the teams efforts.

With our first back-to-back wins of the year behind us, Leeds United will take some confidence into this game and hopefully return with the three points needed to keep the pressure on second place Millwall. The players will have bitter memories of Carlisle, but should channel that emotion into getting revenge in the best way possible – by winning!