Leeds United fans throw shirt of Georginio Rutter back at him as Premier League relegation done
After Leeds United were relegated, Georgino Rutter threw his shirt into the crowd but a disgruntled fan chucked it back on to the pitch, to sum up the emotion at Elland Road.
Leeds were relegated to the Championship following a 4-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of the Premier League season. They only had a very slim chance to retain their top-flight status but Everton’s win made the Whites’ own result redundant.
Sam Allardyce’s arrival resulted in just one point from a possible 12 and now the club faces huge change and challenges, on and off the pitch in the months ahead.
Emotions were obviously running high in the stands and the gesture from Rutter was not reciprocated as it quickly came back where it came from, as pointed out by BBC Sport journalist Simon Stone on his Twitter account.
“Rutter threw his shirt into the crowd,” he said.
“Someone threw it straight back. It’s lying there near the goal now.”
The French player is not a popular figure amongst the Whites supporters so it is no surprise to hear of this incident.
Misery ended at last
This outcome was one that almost everybody expected. Only the most optimistic fan would have been thinking that results would have gone in Leeds’ favour to pull off a great escape.
The biggest problem was that there was very little chance of Allardyce’s side getting the win that they needed, the minimum required, in order for things to go their way.
Over the last few months, week after week, this team has been found out. The quality was just not in place with the last-gasp move to bring in Big Sam, coming far too late. It was a futile exercise but the dice had to be rolled, somehow.
The last reflections will be made and further analysis provided on a horrible campaign for Leeds, but there isn’t much to say that isn’t known already.
The misery has ended, at last, and now it’s about picking up the pieces for the return to the Championship.
In other Leeds news, three may have already played their final game for the club and 4 more could follow after Spurs.