View From The Town End: Leeds United

Many thanks to James Mahoney from Nowt For Second for helping us to preview Saturday’s game.

Leeds appointed Thomas Christiansen as manager this summer, how well has he done in the Elland Road dugout so far?

He’s done really well. Christiansen has been able to take the foundations that Garry Monk implemented last season and build on them to make us even better. The Cruyff influence in his managerial philosophy has turned Leeds into a really good footballing side.

We are now playing a style of football which can be deadly in the Championship and we have started under Christiansen better than we all expected.

What’s going right for Leeds at the moment?

On the field I think we are playing attacking free-flowing football, which is wonderful to see in a league not known for creative football.

We have made some really good signings that have improved the team and you can see that the improvement on what was a decent team already. However, off the field has made all difference at the club, the new owner Andrea Radrizzini has took the club forward, he genuinely cares about the football club and has reconnected the fanbase and the club from what was a difficult period under his predecessor.

And where is there room for improvement?

We need to be more physical in certain games, we are playing wonderful creative football. However, when a team gets in our face, we start to lose focus and this has cost us points against teams like Preston, Millwall and Cardiff.

Which Leeds player should Reading fans be the most worried about on Saturday? Who’s your stand-out threat?

Samuel Saiz - the Spanish magician has been a revelation this season, his close control and quick feet has caused all sorts of problems for opposition defenders. If Saiz is allowed to find space in-between the midfield and defence, Reading will have very difficult afternoon.

Is there anyone that has caught your eye for good or bad reasons in this Reading team?

I rate John Swift very highly and I assume his injury has played a major part in the poor start for Reading. I also like David Edwards, I think he is a player who can take the game by the horns and change a game.

For me, what has surprised me is the lack of goals for Reading. A team who want to get promoted need goals and I think so far, that is most disappointing thing I have noticed about Reading.

How do you see the game going? And what will the score be?

I think both teams struggled before the international break, so I expect a tight scrappy affair as both teams will not want to lose the game. A few times this season, Leeds have struggled to take control at home but have still won the game comfortably and I think Saturday will be no different. I can see Reading having most of the possession but Leeds being the more clinical in front of goal. 2–0 Leeds.