'Shattered' Leeds fans face new blow

Ray Fell, chairman of the Leeds United Supporters’ Club, has described the Football League’s 15-point penalty as a “recipe for relegation”.

The Football League have agreed to allow Leeds to start the season but on condition of a 15-point penalty because the troubled club’s administrator KPMG failed to secure a Company Voluntary Arrangement with its creditors.

And Fell said the supporters were “shattered, but we’re shattered every day at Elland Road”.

Fell added on Sky Sports News: “The only good news is that we will be able to compete in the league but the fans are bewildered by it all. It’s a recipe for relegation.”

Joe McLean, football expert with financial advisors Grant Thornton, believes the penalty is the league trying to assert its authority.

Asked about the penalty, he said: “I think it’s fair in the sense that there have been 41 administrations in English football in recent years and they have all been concluded by a CVA.

“The league is signalling its intent to make sure its rules are not transgressed.”