Leeds United U20

19 Dec 2026
Saturday
Process
20 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

14 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Match

Cup progress for Leeds United

A 2‑1 win over Leicester City, a place in the next round, and the quiet arithmetic every supporter does on the walk home: how many more until a final?

Squad

Iliman N'Diaye in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Leeds United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Leeds United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Melvin Bard is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Leeds United find a way past Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest made Leeds United work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Squad

Ao Tanaka reaches 200 appearances

200 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Luca Langoni

Marked 8.14 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Carles Soria at his very best

Marked 8.08. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Leeds United.

Player ratings

The game went through James Justin — 7.36

Marked 7.36 on 9 actions at both ends of the pitch. Midfielders like this get described as unspectacular by people who have never tried to play against one.

Player ratings

Nobody on the pitch touched Dominic Calvert-Lewin

7.84, and no serious argument from anybody who was there. Leeds United had eleven men on the pitch and one of them decided how it went.

In brief

Back issues
19 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

7 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Tempers go at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jaka Bijol was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

Tottenham take the points off Leeds United

Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

Squad

Jayden Bogle makes it 200

200 times in these colours, in all weathers and under four or five different managers. That kind of service is quietly disappearing from the game.

Squad

Nico Elvedi stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Nico Elvedi and Leeds United agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Loan watch

Robert Cook has seen enough of Gillingham

“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Leeds United, and 1 appearances in 13 say he has earned the hearing.

The dugout

The view from the dugout

“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Jacob Price to a room that had heard them before.

The dugout

Lukas Nmecha dropped after a run of poor form

The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.

Boardroom

$58.0K lands at Leeds United thanks to Sam Chambers

A clause somebody insisted on years ago, in a negotiation nobody remembers, has just paid Leeds United $58.0K. Sam Chambers left a long time ago; the paperwork stayed.

In brief

18 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Player ratings

Noah Okafor scores twice — 8.48

Two goals and a mark of 8.48 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Squad

James Trafford signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” James Trafford and Leeds United agree another 5 years.

Squad

Words exchanged at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Match

Leeds United find a way past Wolverhampton

Wolverhampton made Leeds United work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Harry Wilson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Iliman N'Diaye at his very best

Marked 8.07. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Leeds United.

The dugout

No hiding place for Lukas Nmecha

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Lukas Nmecha, and the manager let it.

The dugout

A promise honoured at Leeds United

Something was said to Iliman N'Diaye and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.

The dugout

Jacob Price has his say

“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Jacob Price on a 2‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.

In brief

17 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

23 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Player ratings

Both of them Borja Sainz's — 8.15

2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.15, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.

Squad

A falling-out at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match

Leeds United find a way past Aston Villa

Aston Villa made Leeds United work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Melvin Bard was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

50 goals in the shirt for Borja Sainz

50 for the club now, each one filed in somebody’s memory with a date and a scoreline. Numbers like this are what supporters argue about in twenty years.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Iliman N'Diaye

Marked 8.26 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

The dugout

Jacob Price has his say

“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Jacob Price on a 2‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.

Squad

Borja Sainz is off the mark for Leeds United

The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.

Market

The Anton Stach story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Anton Stach signs something — a contract at Leeds United or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

In brief

16 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

16 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Iliman N'Diaye runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 31. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Tempers go at Leeds United

Noah Okafor was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Leeds United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jaka Bijol is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

The goals have deserted Leeds United

3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Leeds United can tell you which week it ends in.

Market

Kerwin Vargas wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Match

Brighton take the points off Leeds United

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Ethan Ampadu

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

Leeds United keep their word to Iliman N'Diaye

Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.

The dugout

Jacob Price: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑1, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

In brief

15 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

9 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Leeds United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jaka Bijol is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

No hiding place for Anton Stach

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Anton Stach, and the manager let it.

Loan watch

Robert Cook wants to come home

“I did not go to Gillingham to sit and watch. I want to come back to Leeds United and fight for my place.” 1 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.

Match

A bad afternoon for Leeds United against Chelsea

0‑2 to Chelsea, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

The dugout

Jacob Price faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Jacob Price after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

Squad

Leeds United are still strangers to each other

5 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.

The dugout

Jaka Bijol knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Leeds United, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Squad

A new system beds in at Leeds United

2 games now in a shape the manager was not using a month ago. Changing a formation is easy and keeping one is not, which is why the second of those is the part that tells you something.

In brief

14 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

2 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Leeds United through in the cup

A 3‑0 win over Charlton Athletic, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Iliman N'Diaye

Successful dribbles: 34. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

The dugout

Jaka Bijol keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Leeds United may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Player ratings

Daniel James scores twice — 8.27

Two goals and a mark of 8.27 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Player ratings

Up for the corner, and Carles Soria delivers — 7.64

Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Carles Soria scored, was marked 7.64, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.

Market

Anton Stach raises the bar for Leeds United

“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Leeds United heard it as anything else.

Squad

Words exchanged at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Market

Luca Langoni wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Melvin Bard falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

In brief

13 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

26 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Market

Leeds United may not be able to give Anton Stach what he wants

It is the most legitimate ambition in the sport and the hardest for most clubs to satisfy. Anton Stach wants continental football; whether Leeds United can provide it is a question about the next two seasons, not about him.

Squad

A falling-out at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Words at Leeds United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jaka Bijol is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Leeds United see off Bournemouth

Three points for Leeds United, 1‑0 the final word against Bournemouth in a contest settled by the finer margins.

Player ratings

One of those days for Iliman N'Diaye

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.34, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Squad

Carles Soria wants to go home

“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Leeds United know it.

The dugout

No hiding place for Sean Longstaff

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Sean Longstaff, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

Dominic Calvert-Lewin runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 15. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

The dugout

Somebody else is better right now than James Trafford

The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.

In brief

12 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

19 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Iliman N'Diaye beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 38. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Squad

The step up is real for Jean-Mattéo Bahoya

At 21 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.

Squad

Iliman N'Diaye in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Leeds United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

A bad afternoon for Leeds United against Manchester City

1‑2 to Manchester City, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Squad

Words at Leeds United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Harry Wilson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Lukas Nmecha

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

The view from the dugout

“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑2 defeat, delivered by Jacob Price to a room that had heard them before.

The dugout

James Trafford dropped after a run of poor form

The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.

Market

Iliman N'Diaye linked with a move away

The name of Iliman N'Diaye keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Leeds United say nothing, which says plenty.

In brief

11 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

12 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Melvin Bard was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

Iliman N'Diaye sends Leeds United past Newcastle United

It finished 1‑0, and it was Iliman N'Diaye’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Leeds United.

Player ratings

One of those days for Iliman N'Diaye

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.37, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

The dugout

Joe Rodon gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Squad

Leeds United are still strangers to each other

11 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.

Loan watch

Robert Cook counts the days

“I watch every Leeds United game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Gillingham runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.

The dugout

Leeds United pick somebody else ahead of James Trafford

There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.

The dugout

The view from the dugout

“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Jacob Price, on a 1‑0 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.

In brief

10 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Words exchanged at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

James Trafford has improved at 24, which nobody expected

Careers are supposed to plateau and then decline, and the players who ignore that are always the ones who were listening on the training ground. 3 points of it, over months, at an age where the direction normally only goes one way.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jaka Bijol was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom

Belts tighten at Leeds United

The accounts are being read more closely than the results. Wages before ambition is the order of business now, and the manager has been told so.

Match

Sunderland take the points off Leeds United

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

Squad

Harry Wilson is no longer first choice

The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Harry Wilson has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.

The dugout

The manager’s verdict

“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑1 Jacob Price left the room before anybody could ask which.

The dugout

No hiding place for Jayden Bogle

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Jayden Bogle, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

Jean-Mattéo Bahoya beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 15. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

In brief

9 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No mercy from Leeds United

West Ham United will want this one forgotten quickly: 3‑0, every duel lost, and a long ride home. Leeds United were ruthless in the way good sides are ruthless.

Squad

A falling-out at Leeds United

Anton Stach and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

A move Lourenço Henriques would have made for nothing

There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Lourenço Henriques is living that version at Leeds United, and it tends to show in the first month.

Squad

Harry Wilson falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Match

The drought breaks for Leeds United

5 without a win is the sort of run that changes how a town talks about its club, and West Ham United were the afternoon it stopped. Nothing is fixed by one result and everything feels different by one.

Match

Leeds United settle it inside twenty minutes

2 goals before the ground had finished arriving. West Ham United spent the rest of the afternoon playing a match that had already been decided, and everybody in the stadium knew it.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Noah Okafor

Marked 8.43 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Harry Wilson

Marked 8.19 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Dominic Calvert-Lewin

Marked 8.05 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

In brief

8 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

5 matches without a win for Leeds United

The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Leeds United are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Iliman N'Diaye in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Leeds United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

3 matches without a goal for Leeds United

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Transfer targets

Leeds United rebuffed over Nəriman Axundzadə

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Columbus Crew have kept their man, and Leeds United go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Match

Leeds United come up short against Arsenal

Arsenal left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Melvin Bard was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

200 appearances for Anton Stach

200 games in these colours. Service of that kind gets rarer every season, and the crowd knows it.

The dugout

No hiding place for Brenden Aaronson

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Brenden Aaronson, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Jacob Price faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Jacob Price after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

In brief

7 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

14 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Borja Sainz was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 33. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Match

4 matches without a win for Leeds United

The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Leeds United are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Tempers go at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Jaka Bijol falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Maximiliano Araújo

Leeds United asked and Sporting CP said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Match

Brentford take the points off Leeds United

Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

Market

Leeds United may not be able to give Kerwin Vargas what he wants

It is the most legitimate ambition in the sport and the hardest for most clubs to satisfy. Kerwin Vargas wants continental football; whether Leeds United can provide it is a question about the next two seasons, not about him.

The dugout

Jacob Price answers for it

“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.

The dugout

Leeds United pick somebody else ahead of James Trafford

There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.

In brief

6 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Player ratings

Iliman N'Diaye beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 31. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Boardroom

Leeds United close the window on a squad of their own making

10 in and 5 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.

Squad

Words exchanged at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jaka Bijol was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom

Leeds United counting the cost

The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Leeds United now.

Transfer targets

DC United tell Leeds United: Louis Munteanu is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

10 new faces, and Leeds United are still learning each other

A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.

The dugout

The form table has caught James Trafford

Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.

Squad

International break empties Leeds United

4 call-ups is a compliment to the squad and a headache for the man running it. He will get them back in a fortnight, tired, in various states of repair.

In brief

5 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Leeds United plan ahead with Kerwin Vargas from Charlotte Football Club

The most awkward business a club does is signing tomorrow's answer while today's is still in the building. Kerwin Vargas comes from Charlotte Football Club for exactly that purpose, and the handover will not be discussed publicly by anybody.

Squad

A falling-out at Leeds United

Iliman N'Diaye and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Transfer targets

Leeds United rebuffed over Robin Roefs

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Sunderland have kept their man, and Leeds United go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Market

Luca Langoni wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Melvin Bard was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Player ratings

Noah Okafor was the difference for Leeds United

Marked 7.94. Ask anyone leaving the ground what settled it and you will get one name, which is the only award that has ever really counted.

Squad

Borja Sainz is a square peg at Leeds United

The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.

Match

Leeds United share the spoils with Crystal Palace

A 1‑1 draw with Crystal Palace leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.

The dugout

Half-satisfied: Jacob Price on the draw

“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 1‑1, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.

In brief

4 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Transfer targets

No deal for Anatolii Trubin at that price

Leeds United offered $25.5M; Benfica said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.

Market

Borja Sainz arrives at Leeds United as the heir apparent

Every dressing room knows how to read a signing like this one. Borja Sainz is not here to sit and wait indefinitely, and the man whose place he has been bought to take knows it better than anyone.

Market

Jonny Howson asks to leave Leeds United

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Borja Sainz gets the move he always wanted

Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Borja Sainz has just signed for Leeds United, and for once the answer mattered.

Squad

Iliman N'Diaye in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Leeds United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Leeds United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jaka Bijol is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Fulham take the points off Leeds United

Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Ao Tanaka

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Squad

No place for Iliman N'Diaye in the new shape

He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Leeds United are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.

In brief

  • The dugout The manager’s verdict
  • The dugout James Trafford dropped after a run of poor form
  • Market The Jaka Bijol story refuses to die
3 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Transfer targets

Leeds United agree $21.3M for Borja Sainz

The clubs have shaken hands with Porto; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.

Transfer targets

An offer of $25.5M for Anatolii Trubin

Leeds United have gone to Benfica with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Estêvão

Leeds United asked and Chelsea said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Transfer targets

Leeds United make their move for Kerwin Vargas

$9.4M on the table at Charlotte Football Club. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.

Market

Leeds United bring in Iliman N'Diaye from Everton for the long haul

A squad is not eleven players and a wish. Iliman N'Diaye arrives from Everton to make the number up properly, and the value of that will be argued about in March rather than today.

Market

CSKA Moscow come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Leeds United did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Squad

Words exchanged at Leeds United

Jaka Bijol and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Iliman N'Diaye falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Boardroom

5 academy players handed senior numbers at Leeds United

The morning the pathway stops being a brochure and becomes a team sheet. Most of them will not be here in three years; all of them have already done the hard part, which was getting to today.

In brief

2 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Transfer targets

An offer of $43.2M for Iliman N'Diaye

Leeds United have gone to Everton with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Transfer targets

Liverpool tell Leeds United: Conor Bradley is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Market

Leeds United say no — this time

The offer from Sheffield United for Dominic Calvert-Lewin was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Market

Leeds United sign Luca Langoni with one eye on the future

Nobody at the club will say out loud who this signing is for, which is how you know exactly who it is for. Luca Langoni has been brought in to take a shirt somebody is still wearing.

Squad

Jaka Bijol signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Jaka Bijol and Leeds United agree another 4 years.

Squad

Jaka Bijol in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Leeds United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

Ao Tanaka wants to know where this is going

“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Leeds United hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.

Market

Leeds United sell Rhys Chadwick for $380.0K

Rhys Chadwick has left for Salford City in a $380.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.

Squad

Jacob Render falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

In brief

1 Edition

The Leeds United Courier

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Transfer targets

Leeds United rebuffed over Iliman N'Diaye

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Everton have kept their man, and Leeds United go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Market

Leeds United say no — this time

The offer from Borussia Mönchengladbach for Anton Stach was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Transfer targets

An offer of $10.1M for Luca Langoni

Leeds United have gone to New England Revolution with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Market

Anton Stach wants to know where this is going

“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Leeds United hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.

Squad

Harry Wilson stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Harry Wilson and Leeds United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Words exchanged at Leeds United

Anton Stach and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

A row about effort at Leeds United

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jaka Bijol was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

An unwelcome headline for Marley Wilson

He will be fined, he will apologise, and he will play on Saturday. The order of those three tells you everything about what a football club actually values.

Market

Still no ink between Leeds United and Jacob Render

“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Leeds United, another week without a signature from Jacob Render.

In brief