‘JAMES IS JUST MONEY WASTED’
Radio pundit Jordan aims dig at Wales star Dan
SIMON Jordan says Daniel James has been a “fundamental disappointment” and “a waste of money” at Leeds United. Wales winger James made the headlines last week after seeing red for a studs-up challenge on Chelsea’s Mateo Kovacic in Leeds’s 3-0 defeat by the Blues at Elland Road.
The result leaves Jesse Marsch’s team in grave danger in the Premier League, though they did pull out of the relegation zone with a late equaliser in a 1-1 draw with Brighton yesterday.
Burnley, a place below Leeds, have played a match less and have a better goal difference than their rivals.
James is suspended for the final fixtures of the campaign. On TALKSPORT, Jordan and Martin Keown were discussing Leeds’s recent sendings off, with Luke Ayling and James seeing red in consecutive games to leave them teetering on the brink.
Down to 10 men against Arsenal, Leeds went on to lose both games.
Jordan went on a mini-rant to declare James’s £25 million move from Manchester United last summer “a waste of money in my eyes”, believing that illdiscipline could well cost Leeds their top-flight status.
Jordan said: “Luke Ayling’s decision was not about anything other than getting the Leeds fans behind him in that corner of the pitch and that particular moment in time because he had been given the runaround by a particular player.
“Dan James’s decision – it’s irresponsible, it’s not a case of... they’ve got to go into these games with blood and thunder.
“What that doesn’t excuse is
irresponsibility. You bring intensities to the pitch, you bring physicality to it, but you don’t bring what Luke Ayling brought to that particular situation, because there is no reason behind it.
“Dan James, who has been a fundamental disappointment all season to Leeds and a waste of money in my view, has left them in a situation in a game which they might not have been expected to get much out of, they might have been able to nick a draw, but has made it virtually impossible for them to do so.”
Jordan did add, though, that he sees Leeds escaping the mire and surviving at the Clarets’ expense.
Keown had previously said on Match of the Day that he did not see that aggressive trait in James during his time at Old Trafford, and suggested it came with the territory of playing for Leeds.
“It’s something he didn’t really do at Manchester United, I don’t know whether it comes with playing for Leeds,” Keown said.
“A part of that getting stuck in and getting around people. But at the moment it’s costing them. They’ve had a catalogue of injuries, down to 10 men again, everything that could go wrong went wrong.”