It’s Now or Never for Marsch
Thursday’s disappointing result at the King Power, followed by the away section’s unrest and the sacking of Steven Gerrard confirmed one thing; results have to improve for Marsch, fast.
Fans can be fickle, unforgiving and demanding — especially when things are not going in their favour, which they most certainly are not at Leeds.
After such a positive performance against Arsenal at the weekend, Leeds had no choice but to follow it up with a performance likewise; yet it just confirmed Leeds are in deep water this season — a not-so unfamiliar feeling.
A feeling that you can’t help but think could have been prevented. The same issues outshine any positives; Leeds look timid, tame and easy to beat.
Marsch tinkered with the line-up against Leicester — a gamble that failed. Leeds continued to look toothless and struggle to create real goalscoring chances and when they do, they can’t finish them.
It is impossible to win a game without scoring, so is there any surprise Leeds are without a win since their 3–0 hammering of Chelsea?
Well, it is when you know these problems have not been simmering under the surface — they have been at boiling point for months now.
A huge problem for Marsch is Bamford. When fit and firing he is undoubtedly Leeds’ best marksman, but have Leeds really got the time to be patient?
The answer is no, they don’t. Games are being described as ‘must-wins’ at this early stage of the season and that tells the tale; Leeds and Marsch are already in a race to turn this around.
The stats don’t tell a good story, either. Leeds after ten games this season have attained nine points. It was ten last season.
Truth be told, while just days ago many were not discussing his departure, Marsch is not bulletproof, and there are shots flying around at the moment. If it is not turned around in relatively quick fashion, one of them may prove deadly.
Leeds are not without their defensive problems too; they seem to have a canny knack of shooting themselves in the foot.
Robin Koch’s own goal was the result of another gift in possession, and Barnes’, while well-worked, was far too easy.
The fact of the matter is, if you aren’t going to be scoring frequently, then you cannot be conceding. That was the story of last year, and seems to be this year’s fable too.
Is Marsch in trouble? It’s not at tipping point, yet. But it is no joke; Leeds fans will not accept more performances like last night against similar opposition. Sunday must yield points, namely three, against a scintillating Fulham who just put three past Aston Villa, a team who Leeds recently failed to score against, effectively ending Gerrard’s tenure.
It doesn’t get any easier for Leeds, either. After their run of two points from 21 — a run that included many ‘winnable’ games — Leeds face Fulham, Liverpool (at Anfield), Bournemouth and Spurs before the World Cup break. You get the feeling Marsch will have to pull some results out of the bag if he would like to be in the dugout for Manchester City on Boxing Day, a game sure to bring the festive spirit to Elland Road.
The four games leading up to the halt are make or break for Marsch; the board have shown before that they are not opposed to sacking the manager in order to stay in the league — and Marsch is not an exception.
Leeds have to begin finding points from somewhere, starting on Sunday. A last-gasp escape should not be on the cards this season, but with all the evidence so far it seems it may be going that way.