Leeds United's 00/01 European Adventure Part 3: On-Field Brilliance, Off-Field Shame, Leeds Keep Marching On.

The Second Group Stage Draw

Two days after securing qualification in the San Siro, where the songs about Dom Matteo's 'fucking great goal' had barely died down, Leeds were to find out their opponents for the second group phase of the Champions League. This time the draw moved from Milan back to UEFA's headquarters in Switzerland. As runners-up in the first group phase with the lowest co-efficient, Leeds were placed last in the 4th pot. The draw hadn't even been made, and the odds were quickly stacking against them. But this was a Leeds team who were no longer wet behind the ears; going toe-to-toe with AC Milan and Barcelona, and still qualifying, had given the young players a new found swagger and confidence in Europe.

As expected, Leeds were spat into another spiteful looking group: Real Madrid, Lazio, and Anderlecht awaited in Group D. Real Madrid were 8 times winners, and the current holders of the Champions League, Lazio were the current Serie A champions and one of the pre-season favourites, and Anderlecht were the current Belgian champions with a formidable home record in Europe. Of course, the 'experts' wrote them off, but I doubt the players would have had it any other way. Leeds were relishing their underdog status.

Real Madrid (h)

Leeds first game of the second phase was against Real Madrid at Elland Road. Real's galacticos project was still in its infancy, but you wouldn't have guessed that with the players at their disposal. Armed with talents such as Luis Figo, Raul, Roberto Carlos, and Steve McManaman, many could be forgiven for assuming a shellacking, similar to the one dished out by Barcelona earlier in the competition, would be on the cards. Those waiting for Leeds to be embarrassed were out of luck, though. Leeds battled well for over an hour, but two goals in as many minutes gave the Spaniards a 2-0 victory. The first goal came from the head of Hierro, while the second was scored courtesy of Raul. It wasn't to be that night at Elland Road, but Leeds at least showed the fight that would serve them well against their future opponents.

Another Famous Result In Italy

Next Leeds travelled to another of Italy's famous stadiums; this time it was the Stadio Olympico with Lazio the opposition. Lazio's name may not carry the same weight today as it once did, but back in the early 2000s they were a force to be reckoned with. Players like Alessandro Nesta, Pavel Nedved, Juan Sebastian Veron, and Hernan Crespo filled their line-ups. They had some serious money and talent, and it wasn't hard to see why they were considered one of the early season favourites.

The general consensus before kick-off was that Leeds really needed at least a point in Rome. Coming back after losing the first 2 games would be a hell of an ask. As was customary by this point, Leeds weren't given much of a chance, however.

If Leeds were supposed to have feared Lazio, the players hadn't received the memo. Leeds pursued Lazio's goal straight from the beginning and should have scored in the 8th minute, as Bowyer's cross flashed across the 6 yard box, agonisingly evading Smith, Viduka, and Woodgate. Not long after that, Eirik Bakke had a header cleared off of the line. Leeds were knocking on the door.

It may have been Yorkshiremen who were applying the pressure, but Lazio looked dangerous on the counter attack; Crespo saw a shot ripple the side netting, Pancaro hit the bar from a corner, and Salas also had a header cleared off of the line. Following these scares, Leeds then went close again through Bowyer and Dacourt. Somehow, it remained 0-0 as the referee blew for half-time. Goals may have been in short supply, but intent certainly wasn't.

Into the second half, and Lazio started to show more of their quality, with Nedved in particular looking lively as he flashed a shot past Martyn's post. Leeds had their own chances, with Viduka and Woodgate both going close.

Finally, though, in the 80th minute, Leeds struck. A moment of magical link up play saw Smith find Viduka in the box. The big Aussie timed his pin-point back heel to perfection, and found the on-running Smith to complete the 1-2. Smith coolly slid the ball past Peruzzi and into Lazio's net. Close games often hinge on moments of brilliance, and Mark Viduka and Smith had produced one here to give Leeds what was arguably their most impressive result of the campaign so far.

As the Champions League entered into its winter break, Leeds were sitting joint second in the group with 3 points. It was a healthy position to be in, far healthier than many had expected at least. The 2 games after the break would be a double header against Anderlecht in February, and good results would be crucial against a team that had also been defying expectations.

Domestic Issues

Leeds may have been enjoying themselves in the sunny uplands of continental football, but domestically it was a very different story: the Lazio win came on the 5th of December and at that point in the league Leeds were 11th in the table having already lost 5 games.

Leeds were guaranteed at least £10 million for their participation in the Champions League - not exactly an amount to be sniffed at 25 years ago. But, Leeds hadn't exactly been shrinking violets in the transfer market. Huge sums had been spent with the future Champions League qualification almost mandatory in order to recoup some of that money. It was a big gamble, and one that they were losing.

A Disgraceful Ordeal

Off the pitch, there was something far more troubling the players: back in January of 2000, a team night out went awry and left Lee Bowyer and Jonathan Woodgate facing some very serious charges.

Bowyer and Woodgate were part of a larger group which included other Leeds players, as well as a couple of Woodgate's childhood friends. After one of Woodgate's friends was thrown out of Majestyk nightclub, he proceeded to get into a verbal altercation with some Asian students. This resulted in the group chasing and beating one of the Asian students, who received several broken bones and a bite laceration to his cheek. The accusations that a racial slur had been shouted, led the attack to be deemed as racially motivated, giving the violence an even more sinister edge.

The whole grim saga would slowly play out over 23 months, and involved 2 court cases. The first court case collapsed after the victim's dad gave an interview to a newspaper which was considered to be prejudicial, and the second court case finally concluded in December 2001. As the trail drew to a close, the shadow cast over the club was significant. Bowyer and Woodgate were considered football pariahs, and Ridsdale was pilloried  for allowing them to continue playing. The dressing room was rumoured to have become fractured, and the already frayed relationship between O'Leary and Ridsdale (O'Leary called the £18 million fee that Ridsdale had shelled out for Rio Ferdinand 'obscene') became even more difficult. It felt like Leeds United as a football club were on trial.

The negativity surrounding the players and club were exacerbated further when both players were spared jail time. Bowyer was acquitted, and Woodgate was found guilty of affray (fighting), for which he was ordered to complete 100 hours of community service. He was cleared of the more serious charge of GBH. Woodgate's friend, Paul Clifford was sentenced to 6 years in prison, while his other friend, Neale Caveney, received the same sentence as Woodgate himself.

It may have come as a relief to the players, club, and the fans, but the fact that both players walked away from the trail relatively unscathed felt like 'Justice for the rich' given the players money and profile. For the victim and his family, it must've felt like a slap in the face.

I was too young to fully understand, or even remember, the trial. However, reading about the events in hindsight, I certainly have a lot of sympathy for the victim, and it's hard not to believe that had they not been famous footballers, Woodgate and Bowyer would've served time in prison. It was a savage and nasty assault, and it was handled appallingly by Ridsdale in particular. A sorry and shameful ordeal all round.

Anderlecht At Home Amidst Improved League Form

With the embarrassment and indignity of the court case behind them, it seemed that Leeds had been granted a new lease of life in the Premier League. As Leeds headed towards the resumption of the Champions League against Anderlecht in February, they were on a 5 game unbeaten run, having recorded 3 wins and 2 draws. Finally, the disconnect between Champions League and Premier League performances was beginning to fade away.

On the 13th of February Leeds welcomed Anderlecht to Elland Road for the first of their back-to-back group games against the Belgian champions. While they weren't on the same level as Real Madrid or Lazio in terms of prestige or quality, they were definitely a capable side, full of canny operators. Their main weapon was the classic big-man/ little-man strike partnership of Jan Koller and Tomasz Radzinski; between them they had already scored 7 champions league goals and 35 league goals between them.

The game itself was a close, but pretty turgid affair, with quality lacking from both teams. The game did spark into life in the 65th minute when Stoica gave Anderlecht the lead after some smart build-up play. Their lead didn't last long, though. Ian Harte's low 30 yard drive levelled the scores on 74 minutes. A draw wasn't ideal given Leeds had the very tricky trip to Belgium next on the fixture list, but they needn't have worried; with 3 minutes left to play, Leeds took advantage of an Anderlecht mistake as Lee Bowyer fired Leeds to a 2-1 victory.

A Thrashing In Brussels

Leeds travelled to Belgium knowing a win would all but see them qualify for the quarter finals. But they knew it wouldn't be easy; Anderlecht were not only unbeaten in the Champions league at home, they had won against all comers to the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium as Manchester United, PSV, and Lazio were all swatted aside in Brussels.

Their job wasn't made any easier with Lee Bowyer, Jonathan Woodgate and Robbie Keane all  missing the trip, and Harry Kewell only semi-fit. With this in mind, it wouldn't have been surprising if O'Leary had set Leeds up defensively, hoping to steal a goal on the counter. He did the opposite. Straight from the opening whistle Leeds made it clear they weren't there to sit back and soak up the pressure.

Bakke went close in the 7th minute, when his shot was tipped over by Milojevic in the Anderlecht goal. The net may not have bulged, but it was a warning of what was to come, when 5 minutes later Smith opened the scoring for Leeds. Viduka found himself with space on the byline and his perfectly weighted cross afforded Smith the opportunity to finish smartly. Leeds were looking confident, and they didn't take too long to add a second; this time Matteo's cross was met with a looping heading from Viduka which sailed over Milojevic and into the net. By now Leeds were flying, but it couldn't get any better.....surely. It absolutely could, and with 5 minutes left in the first half Leeds made it 3-0. This one was the pick of the bunch. An excellent passing move in midfield led to David Batty playing the perfect through ball for Smith to run onto. Smith then proceeded to dink the ball over the oncoming Milojevic. It was an incredible finish and Leeds were in dreamland.

It was a blistering first half performance from Leeds, who were within touching distance of the quarter-finals. It's no surprise then that the sting was taken out of the game in the second half; Anderlecht briefly threatened a comeback when Jan Koller scored with a header, and Nigel Martyn was forced into a superb reflex save to stop Bart Goor's effort. But it was Leeds' night, and that was put beyond any doubt when Ian Harte lashed home a penalty to restore their 3 goal lead. 4-1 to Leeds. They hadn't just ended Anderlecht's unbeaten home record (21 games unbeaten across all competitions), they'd obliterated it. It was a performance worthy of sealing their place in the last 8.

Cheated By Real, Entertained Against Lazio

With qualification assured the last 2 remaining games were essentially dead rubbers. However, it was important for Leeds to give a good account of themselves; they were finally being taken seriously in the competition, even if there were few who genuinely thought they could win it. A result against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu would really showcase their credentials. Confidence was high and the attitude was one of 'why not?'.

Winning at the Bernabeu didn't quite come to fruition; a cheating Raul and a fortunate Figo helped Real to an undeserved victory. It was a desperately unlucky way to lose, but they went toe-to-toe with the champions and held their own. Lastly, Lazio visited Elland Road to wrap up the group formalities. It was truly a game where pressure was visibly off both sets of players, as neither no longer had anything to play for. An incredibly entertaining 3-3 draw ensued, where goals and leads were swapped freely between both teams. It would have been nice to finish the group with a win, but no fan will have left Elland Road feeling short changed.

Who's Next?

Leeds' focus now turned to the business end of the Champions League. No more group games; now it would be a two-legged knock out affair. They'd seen off the likes of Barcelona and Lazio, and now the question was - how far could they go? It was nearly time to find out.