Go up or elsa

Our voice of the North

IT is now or never for Leeds United and their promotion dream.

Marcelo Bielsa (above) and his players will never get a better chance to take the Yorkshire club back to the Premier League after an absence of 15 years. Blistering form, matched by rivals West Brom, has opened up a healthy gap for the top two.

Their halfway points total after yesterday’s 23rd game of the season means they are well on track to beating last season’s total. Repeat it in the second half and it will be good enough for Leeds to go up – Norwich finished on 94 points and Sheffield United 89 last May.

Leeds were six points shy, derailed by a dip when they suffered four defeats in six after winning on Boxing Day. This year the holiday period is crucial. After yesterday’s clash with high-fliers Fulham, Leeds meet promotion challengers Preston and then title rivals West Brom on New Year’s Day. Come through it unscathed, and they will be well on the way.

But there are warning signs. Bielsa’s perennial complaint that they lack natural finishing power and don’t convert enough chances is a genuine worry.

Their goals total is not much better than the record of clubs in mid-table. Perhaps a move for experienced striker Dwight Gayle, who knows how to fire a team to promotion, should be made in January.

On the flip side, Leeds do have the tightest defence in the division.

In the next five months ‘doing a Leeds’ – football shorthand for racking up debts, chasing the dream, before financial meltdown and a tumble down two tiers of the pyramid – could take on a new meaning.

The glory days of the early 2000s, challenging at the top and getting to a Champions League semi-final, will not be revived. But simply being back among the elite would be enough.

Owner Andrea Radrizzani admits outside investors will be helpful once Leeds have got to the top flight.

So the closer the prize gets, the nervier it will become from boardroom level to terraces.