Leeds United fans are currently feeling very lost – presumably – and footage of Luke Ayling which has emerged online certainly won’t help.
The Whites find themselves in limbo after choosing to sack Javi Gracia and replace him with Sam Allardyce, while Victor Orta – Director of Football at Elland Road – has also left.
It is one final throw of the dice in a bid to preserve their Premier League status, but amid the uncertainty, Ayling has angered Leeds fans.
What’s the story?
Well, there were many goals to dissect as Bournemouth hammered Leeds 4-1 on Sunday, but the first strike of the afternoon has been under the spotlight due to Ayling‘s involvement – or lack of involvement – in it.
The Leeds No.2 – rated at £1.7m – could be seen walking back as Bournemouth went on the attack, and continued to simply stroll as the Cherries opened the scoring.
Ayling probably could have prevented the goal had he even broken into a jog back towards his own goal, as the ball rolls out towards the edge of the box before Jefferson Lerma curls it in unchallenged.
You can see the footage in question below.
In truth, the six Leeds players up against three Bournemouth players arguably should have stopped the attack, but had Ayling even made a tiny bit of effort to tuck in, it could have prevented Lerma from scoring.
Luke Ayling’s footage highlights how Leeds has changed
The video of Ayling is extremely telling.
Under Marcelo Bielsa, footage often went viral of Leeds sprinting back to stop an opposition attack while doing likewise when embarking on an attack of their own.
There was a strong sense of unity and desire under the Argentine, with effort levels going through the roof on a weekly basis – now, that is no more.
In particular, it is disappointing to see Ayling of all people strolling around, as he was one of those who put 100% in under Bielsa, and knows what is required to play at this level.
Hopefully, the level of effort changes under Allardyce, or else Leeds could be returning to the Championship.
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