Attack! Attack!! Attack!!!

Super Leeds 7 (Seven) – 0 Cardiff City: Almost cruel

Written by: Rob Conlon
Ethan Ampadu and Junior Firpo patting each other on the back and looking quite smug after Leeds' sixth goal against Cardiff. Quite right, too!

Thereโ€™s an irony in how nobody really talks about any of the goals from Leeds Unitedโ€™s last 7-0 win. The main thing fans remember about that day against Southampton in 1972, the only clip that gets shared, is Billy Bremner and co joyfully toying with their dejected opposition by incessantly passing the ball among themselves to roars from the Elland Road crowd and the soundtrack of Barry Daviesโ€™ commentary. โ€œItโ€™s almost cruel!โ€

Such patient possession has become a forte of Daniel Farkeโ€™s Leeds as theyโ€™ve notched win after win in the Championship over the last eighteen months, yet the roars from the terraces have been replaced by a general malaise of apathy. But something about the visit of Cardiff and speculation that a new striker in Cameron Archer might be about to arrive reawakened the spirit of Super Leeds in this side, and a thirst for goals and goals and goals and goals and goals and goals and goals. Almost cruel? It was pure cold-hearted ferocity; the utter shoeing weโ€™ve all been craving. And weโ€™ve been on the receiving end of this kind of result so many times thereโ€™s no chance Iโ€™m going to start feeling sorry for Cardiff.

So what changed? Five months ago Leeds went to a wretched Cardiff team that were without a win in the league, on the verge of sacking their manager, and had a defender sent off early in the match. United were comfortable 2-0 winners that day, but there was a simmering mutiny in the away end as backward passes were booed, players were abused, and Ilia Gruev had to tell everyone to calm down. The Cardiff team that turned up at Elland Road on Saturday are, believe it or not, much better than their early-season iteration. And after eight games unbeaten they walked right into a 7-0 stuffing.

Has Daniel Farke changed? Unlikely. For better or worse, his attitude and assurance has been the one constant at Leeds in the last two seasons, although after getting the draw he set his team out for at Burnley he showed his intent against Cardiff by replacing the sturdiness of Sam Byram and Ilia Gruev with the more forward-thinking Junior Firpo and Joe Rothwell, and left the national press ruing their decision in attending the wrong Leeds fixture.

Which brings me onto the players themselves, and how sometimes there is just magic in the air and everything clicks. Whether that was due to transfer speculation, pent up energy after the self-discipline at Burnley, or a fortune teller pissing in all four corners of Elland Road again, weโ€™ll never know. What we do know is that every single one of them was irrepressible. The whispers about Cameron Archer were loud enough to wake Joel Piroe from his slumber, and when his two early passes to Dan James led to tap ins for Brenden Aaronson and Manor Solomon, Leeds discovered a blueprint they ruthlessly kept returning to for the rest of the game.

While the attackers stole all the glory, it was the ultimate team performance. For the last few weeks my dad has been sitting next to me in North-East Corner comparing Joe Rodon to his favourite player from our last 7-0, Paul Madeley. While Iโ€™m not sure whether Rodon has the same class to play in each and every outfield position โ€” although I would love for him to try โ€” he reads the game and covers ground with a similar deceptive grace that belies the permanent scowl on his face. In front of him, Ao Tanaka and Joe Rothwell once again showed themselves to be the midfield pairing Elland Road needs for the rest of the season, snapping into tackles and always looking for an inventive pass. Making his first start for two months, Junior Firpo immediately reasserted himself as Leedsโ€™ assist machine, ending the game having created a hat-trick of goals for teammates. Even Illan Meslier got to show off, making an eye-catching save from a long-range shot in the second half.

Meanwhile, what more is there to say about Dan James? After creating the opening two goals and having another ruled out by the offside flag, the Little Jack Bastard eventually got Leedsโ€™ third with an easy finish at the back post from Firpoโ€™s cross and was a Road Runner blur of constant motion all day. He has been all season. No other Leeds player has a more apt song: he really is here, there, and every-fucking-where. And he was still fuming at full-time after being fouled for a penalty when he was about to score his second of the game, leaving Piroe to send the โ€˜keeper the wrong way from the spot while the crowd were confident enough to sing โ€˜no Piroe, no partyโ€™ before heโ€™d even started his run up.

The good vibes only intensified for the last 25 minutes. Straight after Piroeโ€™s penalty, Wilf Gnonto came off the bench and sixty seconds later had scored his first goal in nine games, cutting in from the right wing and finding the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Tanaka responded to shouts of โ€˜shoot!โ€™ by lashing an attempt miles over the bar to huge cheers and a chorus of his name being chanted. Another Firpo cross then allowed Mateo Joseph to end an even longer drought than Gnontoโ€™s, his finish into an empty net his first goal since October.

For perhaps the first time ever under Farke, the fourth official signalled five minutes of added time were still to be played and Elland Road celebrated, desperate to see more. โ€˜We want seven!โ€™ โ€˜Attack! Attack!! Attack!!!โ€™ The Peacocks couldnโ€™t have timed it any more perfectly, lulling Cardiff into a false sense of security with some sensible keep-ball and waiting until the five minutes were almost up before Firpo, popping up in the number 10 position, slipped Piroe through on goal to finish coolly for the seventh.

Thereโ€™s a danger that you can let the slog of a Championship season stop you from savouring days like these. โ€˜Itโ€™s just another three points.โ€™ โ€˜Donโ€™t win at Coventry in midweek and it means nothing.โ€™ Fuck that! This was a historic win, the most emphatic of most supportersโ€™ lifetimes. If you canโ€™t enjoy Leeds United 7 (Seven) Cardiff City 0, then you really ought to find a different hobby. After all, how many times has a match at Elland Road ended with the South Stand asking the away end, โ€˜Who put the ball in the Cardiff net?โ€™ And answering on their behalf, โ€˜Half the fucking team did!โ€™ โฌข

(Photograph by Richard Sellers, via Alamy)

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