Rio Ferdinand praises ‘remarkable’ Leeds United and Jack Harrison after win v Brentford
Rio Ferdinand has admitted he was wrong about Leeds after they avoided relegation from the Premier League, and singled out Jack Harrison for praise.
The Whites secured their Premier League status for next season with a dramatic 2-1 win against Brentford on the final day of the season, as Burnley were beaten by Newcastle.
Ferdinand had previously admitted that he expected Jesse Marsch’s side to be relegated, but speaking on his ‘Vibe with Five’ podcast the former defender said they had done ‘remarkably well’ to stay up and said their win was the perfect advert for the Premier League.
“Yeah they [the celebrations] were crazy.. Raphinha!,” he said.
“This is what makes the Premier League the best league in the world. I don’t care. At times I’ve said it before and you’d say, technically we’re probably not because you had Barcelona and Real Madrid, fine. But in terms of entertainment the Premier League is unrivalled.
“At all parts of the league there’s someone fighting for different things, it’s not just a runaway at the top of the league anymore. The mid-table is jostling for positions and then you’ve got the relegation battle that goes down to the wire, the last day.
“I thought Leeds, because of the form, I didn’t see them beating Brentford away. I thought they were going down. But they done remarkably well to come up.
“And Harrison by the way, whose been a good player for them in the Premier League the last two years, he comes up with the goods late on in that game. And again, last minute goal. It’s brilliant.
“The advert for the Premier League couldn’t have had a better advert than this weekend.”
Massive
The result for Leeds was absolutely massive not just for the impact it had on this season, but also what it does for the club and the squad next season too.
The players will have a belief that the manager’s ideas will work if they follow them, while knowing that they truly belong in the Premier League.
Harrison showed his value to the squad with his second half of the season, scoring plenty of important goals including the injury time winner at the weekend.
His dribbling, his work rate, his attitude and his final ball have all improved under Marsch and he will feel he has plenty of confidence from his manager to keep progressing.
The way the club turned it around again after falling back into trouble in the final weeks showed great character and team spirit, and they will need that next season too.
In other Leeds news, Gary Lineker reacts after amazing Leeds United photo emerges after win v Brentford