Gordon Strachan: Leeds still have an incredible chance of going up

Football get fans especially high and then drops them right down in the dumps. That’s what happened to Leeds United fans last weekend after they lost 1-0 to Sheffield United.

That’s why we go to football though. If it was mundane and predicatable, we wouldn’t go. Leeds hit the post, they went close on many more occasions and just got stung by a counter attack.

The Whites were really comfortable for most of the game. It looked like it was going to be a draw and that would have been a good result for Leeds.

You just never know what’s going to happen in football.

Now though, all the pressure is on Sheffield United. They’re in the automatic promotion spot now, fearing that they could lose it. It’s a different burden for The Blades, so let’s see how they deal with it.

If Leeds are still in the mix with four or five games to play (even if they’re one or two points behind), they’ve got an incredible chance of going up.

The Premier League needs Leeds

It would be great for English football if Leeds got back into the top tier, because they’re one of the teams that can definitely add to the Premier League. Put it this way, if Leeds get into the Premier League, there’ll be a lot of their big games getting shown live on Sky – that’s for sure.

That doesn’t happen for most clubs when they get promoted. Some clubs add value in different ways to the Premier League and some don’t.

Bournemouth have added something by the way they play their football. So have Wolves this season, but some clubs really don’t bring anything to the Premier League.

I’ve been asked to manage The Whites a few times

It’s the one thing my wife always says to me, “how come nobody is asking you to manage Leeds?”

I do want to go back to Leeds. I’ve been asked a couple of times in a clandestine fashion to take over at Elland Road, but I was in a job and I’m not one to walk out. Also, they weren’t in the good position that they are now and the stability just wasn’t there.

I wouldn’t have done anything different in my career though. I have not got any regrets whatsoever, it’s been great.

But if the Leeds job had materialised, then that would have been fine too. There’s also the thing that if you go back to work at a club where you’ve had a great time and been successful, if it doesn’t work out, then that can be a problem.

On the one hand, it would have been great to manage there. But, on the other hand, I’m just happy when I meet a Leeds fan.

I’ve got that in my locker. There’s a great positivity in it, no matter where you go in the world.

I meet Leeds fans who’ll come up to you, speak to you and say thanks. It makes my day as well when they coming up to talk to me. When Leeds fans say: ‘I’m sorry to bother you’, they’re not bothering me at all.

They’re actually making my day a little bit better.

I went for a pizza after winning the title in 1992

After we played Sheffield United, I just went to the hotel, had a cup of tea with my wife and watched the kids splashing about in the pool. Then when we realised we had won the league, I went home and had another cup of tea.

I walked up to Leslie Silver’s house who was the Leeds chairman at the time. I went to see him because he didn’t live too far away from me. I just said thanks very much for everything. We just sat there for half an hour talking about what a fantastic journey it was.

Then I went away and had a pizza.

I never got caught up in the madness. I was older than most of the squad anyway and I wasn’t one for jumping, screaming and shouting.

To be fair, I was also going through a bit of agony with injuries. I really shouldn’t have been playing at that point. I was taking tablets for everything.

So, I think those tablets and alcohol would have sent me bonkers!