Leeds’ promotion back to the Premier League was confirmed on Monday evening after Burnley beat Sheffield United in a crunch Championship clash.
Daniel Farke’s side were on the brink of returning to the top flight following their match at Elland Road on the same day, with the league leaders thrashing Stoke 6-0 just hours before Burnley’s test at Turf Moor.
It meant the Whites only needed Sheffield United to avoid victory in the evening game, and Chris Wilder’s side did just that to count themselves out of the Championship’s automatic promotion places.
Burnley’s victory also confirmed the Clarets’ promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, with Scott Parker enjoying an excellent campaign following the departure of Vincent Kompany to Bayern Munich at the end of last term.
Leeds, who were once an established part of the Premier League during the division’s formative years, were forced to endure two years away from the top flight on this occasion. Last season, their promotion hopes were dashed by defeat in the play-off final against Southampton, leading to doubts surrounding Farke’s future.
But they have not tripped up this time around, securing promotion with two games to spare, and they can now prepare for life in the top flight once again.
Joel Piroe scored four goals in the first half against Stoke, putting on an exhibition for the packed out crowd who were never going to stop the West Yorkshire rain from putting a dampener on their big day.
Their team weren’t either. By half-time, they were five goals up, with four courtesy of Piroe, who scored the quickest hat-trick in Leeds’ history. It ended six-nil but in reality, it could have been even more.
With 89 goals in 44 Championship games, they are the entertainers and now join Marcelo Bielsa’s side of 2019-20 as just the second Leeds team to secure promotion to the Premier League.
Pre-match, Farke had called on everyone from the stewards to the groundsmen to be in full voice as Leeds had ‘the chance to create something really special’ and achieve promotion to the Premier League for the first time with supporters – when they went up in 2020, it was during the pandemic.
They did just that, and the celebrations are full time were those of resignation, with all involved realising they were on the brink. After promotion was confirmed, he said: ‘I’m lost for words, which doesn’t happen that often. You could see from this morning that the atmosphere was amazing.
’94 points at this stage of the season is unbelievable. The players should celebrate, our supporters should celebrate and we will definitely make sure that Easter Monday lasts for one or two more days.
‘It’s difficult on such an emotional day to reflect too much but it was a long road. It’s not easy to stabilise the ship after relegation, and to deal with the lost important players and a hangover from relegation.
‘I just want right now beer after beer, champagne after champagne and don’t bother me about football for a few days.’
‘We were not able to spend too much money and I was also a bit jealous that some other clubs could spend money.’
Leeds have been the best side in the division this season, but it has been a campaign that hasn’t been without some slip ups. In late March and early April, they won just one of seven games as their promotion push stumbled, but they have recovered to win their last four.
Burnley, meanwhile, have been the division’s standout side defensively this season. They have conceded just 14 goals in 44 games under Parker, losing just twice as they proved to be hard to beat.
Against United, their closest challengers for second place, Josh Brownhill scored the opened to lift the roof off Turf Moor, but Thomas Cannon silenced the cheers when he equalised just before the break.
Brownhill, though, netted his second of the game from the penalty spot just before the break. And that was enough, with ecstatic scenes triggered at the full time whistle.
While fans flooded onto the Turf Moor pitch, Sky cameras showed Leeds players celebrating back at Elland Road with champagne being sprayed.
Burnley players mobbed Parker, while some unsavoury scenes saw some fans clash with Sheffield United players as they left the field.
Hamza Choudhury seemed to be the player involved, being moved away by police and then again being held back in the tunnel.
‘I am speechless,’ Burnley hero Brownhill told Sky Sports after the game. ‘All that hard work this season. We have been written off so many times, people calling us boring. We have worked our way back to the Premier League.
‘I am so buzzing for some of the players who haven’t had Premier League football before.’
ITV also shared footage of Leeds fans at the Peacock Pub in Yorkshire, chanting ‘we are going up’ as the game came to an end.
There was also a live stream held on social media, with fans gathering outside Elland Road to bask in the celebrations.
Leeds, meanwhile, shared footage of their players celebrating, wearing promotion flags and chanting ‘Don’t you know pump it up, the Whites are going up’.Â
United must now turn their attentions to ending the season strong before a play-off campaign in their bid to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking. They are eight points adrift of Burnley with 44 games played.
