sport news Leeds 1-2 Southampton: Daniel Farke's side are forced to settle for a play-off ... trends now
As Ipswich Town celebrated their return to the Premier League 200 miles away in East Anglia, a flat Leeds United inside Elland Road were left to wonder what might have been.
Defeat against Southampton was ultimately inconsequential as Ipswich did their job against Huddersfield but having gone unbeaten at home all season till mid-April, Leeds have now lost their last two at Elland Road.
The damning reality is that after a stunning start to 2024, a run of four points in their last six league games has cost them automatic promotion.
Worryingly for Daniel Farke, there is little time for regrets because his side have lost their way at the worst possible time. A two-legged semi-final against Norwich, his former side, awaits and right now, Leeds look a shadow of themselves.
To return to the Premier League at the first time of asking, they will have to do something they have never done before and secure promotion through the play-offs.
Leeds have missed out on automatic promotion after being defeated by Southampton
Adam Armstrong netted from close range to give the visitors the lead at Elland Road
The opener on 18 minutes marked the 27-year-old's 21st Championship goal of the season
Perennially, this is club that fails at that stage with five failed attempts across two divisions. 1987, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2019 all exist in the collection of painful memories. So close and yet so far. If a story sums up their misfortune, then it is that of Angus Kinnear, their current sporting director, removing a bulk of tickets from his boot for the 2019 Championship play-off final and putting them into the hands of a Derby County official outside Elland Road after Derby’s semi-final win.
Not since 1987 have Leeds won a play-off match at Elland Road. And so when they return here, a week on Thursday for the second leg against The Canaries, they will do so in front of a packed crowd that have seen it all before - haunted by past failures and with a genuine fear of falling
