Allardyce borrows Real to flatter Leeds
In the semi-final second leg of the Champions League on May 17, the host Man City crushed Real 4-0. But about 10 days before, also at this field, Leeds only lost 1-2. "I've seen Real fail in a different way from us," Leeds manager Sam Allardyce told the Times with a smile on May 19.
Leeds is currently 18th in the Premier League, with 31 points from 36 matches, one point behind Everton. If it is not possible to exit the group of three bottom teams after the last two rounds, Leeds will have to be relegated to the first division.
Leeds appointed Allardyce as coach from May 3. In the first match, the former England coach helped the team avoid a big defeat against Man City. In the second match, they held another team in the Top 4, Newcastle with a score of 2-2.
"Hopefully we will find a way to help Leeds stay in the Premier League," said Allardyce. "I think we have all the essentials."
When appointed as Leeds coach, Allardyce surprised with his claim to be on the same level as Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta. But then he corrected himself. "I say that to take the pressure off the players and focus on myself," Allardyce explained. "I never considered myself better than them."
Today, May 20, Leeds will play the penultimate match of the 2022-2023 Premier League on the field of West Ham. On May 28, they ended the tournament with a match against Tottenham. Meanwhile, Everton face Wolves and Bournemouth.
Losing to Man City 0-4 is Real's biggest defeat in the European arena since the defeat to Liverpool 0-4 in 2009. The "King" of the Champions League lost to Man City in the end 1-5. The English team entered the final against Inter on June 10, in Istanbul, Türkiye. In the other semi-final, Inter beat Milan 3-0 in the end.
Allardyce was once known as a coach at Bolton and West Ham. He coached England in 2016, but left after only one game. He had to resign due to his alleged involvement in circumventing FIFA and British Football Federation bans on third-party ownership of players.
