Leeds United reporter Phil Hay has been left stunned after an update emerged on one current Whites star.
Leeds unbeaten in 2024
The current calendar year has been good for Daniel Farke, with Leeds winning all five Championship games in 2024 to get their push for automatic promotion back on track.
The Whites have also won their third and fourth-round ties in the FA Cup this year, with a 4-1 replay win at Plymouth Argyle on Tuesday setting up a trip to Chelsea later this month.
Things are looking good on the pitch, however, a worrying update has emerged off the field from one Leeds star.
Phil Hay reacts to Patrick Bamford update
Patrick Bamford is starting to find his feet under Farke, establishing himself as a regular in the starting XI this year. His wondergoal against Peterborough was dubbed “fantastic” by the Leeds boss, following a year to forget in 2023.
Talking on his My Mate’s a Footballer podcast alongside Joe Wilkinson, Bamford revealed that he and his family were targeted by angry fans after he missed a penalty for Leeds against Newcastle towards the end of the 2022/23 season.
“The situation Leeds were in was a pretty diabolical one – we were looking like we were going to go down, which we eventually did. I always had Twitter, until about mid-March. The abuse got so bad – threatening my family and even my little girl.
“As I turn up the drive to get in I can’t even cross the gate, there’s two cars [blocking it]. I went to put my window down. As I did, they put their windows up and just started at me. Then the gate opened because my dad had opened it and they drove off.
“I think it was a culmination of the last few weeks. I took a lot of flak for it. The way they expressed it was crazy. It goes from conversations with David [Bamford’s sports psychologist] about sorting out how I’m feeling to then I’ve got to deal with [the fact] Michaela doesn’t feel safe in her own home.
“I rang him literally straight after that happened. He was like ‘how do you feel?’ I said ‘I’m not upset about the abuse, I’m angry that someone’s come up to the house’. The club ended up putting security on the house for the night.”
Taking to X, Hay reacted to the news from Bamford, saying: "This is pretty extraordinary, and concerning. Football as a whole has real anger issues."
Hay’s comments are spot on, and this reveal from the striker is horrific. So-called ‘supporters’ targeting the player and his family is terrible, so it is a real testament to Bamford that he has somehow managed to keep this quiet for so long and even re-find his top form to boot.
