MOT View: Promotion pressure raised as BBC journo warns of Championship ‘Financial apocalypse’
If Leeds United were going to pick a season to win promotion to the Premier League, then this would have to be the one.
We all want to see Marcelo Bielsa’s end their 16-year-long spell outside the top-flight by being able to watch them win promotion, in person, at Elland Road but due to the coronavirus pandemic, fans have already had to come to terms that won’t be happening this season.
It is a big price to pay but we would much rather see Leeds return to the Premier League in the coming weeks behind closed doors than we would see them stay in the Championship in the aftermath of a financial crisis.
BBC journalist Daniel Storey has painted a bleak picture for those who will be left behind in the Championship, saying that the clubs in the second division were “operating on borrowed time” even before COVID-19 hit football in the UK.
Writing on the iNews website, Storey has warned that existence as a Championship club could be disastrous for club finances in the not-too-distant future.
“Many Championship owners will have had their resources dented by the financial impacts of the crisis,” he wrote. “Cash injections from owners was the most common method used by clubs to delay financial implosion. How long can that continue at a time of global economic downturn? A financial apocalypse is coming to the Championship. Its clubs have thinner armour than ever.”
Andrea Radrizzani has done more than steady the ship since taking full control of Leeds in 2017 when he bought the Yorkshire club from Massimo Cellino.
The Italian businessman has attracted some criticism – albeit from a minority of fans – for his lack of spending at Elland Road but with so much financial uncertainty, you cannot praise him enough for having Leeds’ books balanced before all this kicked off.
Imagine if Leeds had splashed the cash on useless players rather than pushing the boat out to hire an accomplished manager like Marcelo Bielsa and were sitting mid-table right now. Yet another crisis would be heading to Elland Road, surely.
Radrizzani will still be adamant that Leeds need to win promotion this season to ensure they are not affected by the so-called “financial apocalypse” that is set to hit the Championship.
It raises pressure on Bielsa and his players to secure a spot in the 2020/21 Premier League but that pressure is bound to be something everyone at Leeds United will flourish under.
In other Leeds United news, Sky Sports have made an embarrassing mistake about Kalvin Phillips on their website.