Leeds United news: Rio Ferdinand 'really concerned' for Whites following defeat at Fulham
- Zak Anderton
- 22 April 2023
Former Leeds United player, Rio Ferdinand, has given his thoughts on Leeds United's defeat at Fulham amid their battle to avoid relegation.
Leeds suffered their fifth defeat in five Premier League games after going down 2-1 at Fulham.
Javi Gracia's team started the match off well, with the side managing to keep Fulham out for the first half.
However, after changing their game plan, Marco Silva's side managed to exploit Leeds' shaky defence and score two goals from crosses.
Former Leeds player, Rio Ferdinand, has stated that he is now "really concerned" for the club and believe their next two games are "massive."
He told BT Sports: "It's borderline calamity at times when you look at it, wow.
"I mean, confidence is shot but you look at the numbers, they tell their own story.
"It doesn't matter if you like it or not. They've got to find someone in there, we talk about [Liam] Cooper coming as captain of the football club, you need voices back there.
"You need people that are capable of gathering people, making sure people are lifted from the spirits. At the moment, it's a low ebb.
"For me, the functionality of the team, the way they're structured and set up needs to be looked at. I think they've been too easy to pass through and they've been missing tackles.
"Once a team beats the press, they're going straight through to the backline, especially in the last two games where they've conceded a lot of goals.
"It happens far too often, so many times. At the top level of Premier League football, you'll get punished if you're not right - and they're not right."
With Leicester and Bournemouth to face in their next two matches, this is likely the most crucial part of Leeds' season.
If they fail to get at least three points from those fixtures, it is hard to see how they will retain their Premier League status.
Leeds' next two outings after Bournemouth come against title chasing Manchester City and Eddie Howe's Newcastle United.
Each of which will be gunning for a win to achieve their goals for the season.
Following their 2-1 loss, Leeds are now on the cusp of achieving a rather unwanted Premier League record.
The club have conceded 18 goals during the month of April which is just two shy of the current record for most goals conceded in a calendar month (also held by Leeds.)
This comes after the club has suffered two back to back games in which they have conceded five goals.
The likelihood of them beating the record is extremely high as they face both City and Newcastle before the end of the month.
