Leeds United's opening game of the season has left the former Soccer Saturday presenter worried about the club’s survival bid.
Leeds United came through victorious at a raucous Elland Road on Monday night but despite the well-earned win, some have concerns over a crucial aspect of the way Daniel Farke’s side play.
The only goal of the game came through new signing Lukas Nmecha’s late penalty after a contentious decision by the referee that deemed Everton’s James Tarkowski to have handled the ball inside the box, even though he attempted to keep his arms behind his back as the shot was taken.
The penalty decision stood and Leeds joined their fellow newly promoted rivals, Sunderland, in winning their opening day game after last year’s three that came up from the Championship took until October to register a win.
Leeds used the bouncing Elland Road atmosphere to pile the pressure on David Moyes’ side early on in the game but could not manage to find the goal until the penalty was given and that has left Jeff Stelling scratching his head about the club’s chance of staying up this year.
The former Sky Sports presenter predicted Leeds and Sunderland to avoid the drop after back-to-back seasons when all three promoted teams have gone down but now he’s unsure if Farke’s side can still manage it.
Jeff Stelling on Leeds United hopes
Speaking on TalkSport, Stelling said: “My prediction before the first game was that Sunderland and Leeds would stay up.
“But Leeds need to find someone to put the ball in the back of the net. I couldn’t see where goals were coming from [against Everton].”
Leeds have been in the transfer market as they have looked to add more firepower to their attack and were without their new Premier League-proven attacker, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who signed for the club last week. The English striker should contribute heavily if he can keep himself fit and has shown a knack for scoring in the top-flight throughout his career.
There is also the incoming Noah Okafor from AC Milan, who will add dynamism and has shown earlier in his career that he can provide goals and assists, and that is what Farke will be looking for from a recruit who will cost around £18m.
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