Latest news with #Piroe
BBC News
30-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Leeds destroy Stoke as they go on to win promotion
Joel Piroe scored a hat-trick in the opening 20 minutes as Leeds United tore apart Stoke City on a day when their promotion back to the Premier League was Whites' place in the top flight next season was secured later on Monday when Burnley beat third-placed Sheffield United, a win which also sent the Clarets hosts made an electric start at a buoyant Elland Road as Piroe scored twice in the first eight minutes after poor defensive play from the went from bad to worse for the Potters when the Dutchman, the league's top scorer, completed his treble from close range, before Junior Firpo bundled in a fourth and Piroe made it 5-0 at pace predictably dropped off after the interval but Willy Gnonto headed in the sixth from Manor Solomon's whipped cross from the arrived at Elland Road unbeaten in five but this damaging defeat means they could yet get dragged back into relegation trouble. Piroe gets the party started Former Swansea man Piroe had failed to score in his nine previous games but ended his near three-month drought inside six minutes with a composed finish after Stoke coughed up possession 20 yards from their own Potters were then caught out at the back again just two minutes later as Jayden Bogle pinched the ball and teed up Piroe for his became three for Piroe and the rampant hosts when he hammered in at an angle from a rebound and Firpo got his fourth of the season from close made it 5-0 before the break with another scrappy effort as Stoke totally fell Robins made three changes at the break to try and stem the tide and his men at least managed to keep the score down in the second nature of the sixth goal summed up Stoke's miserable day. They cleared an initial corner in but then got no pressure on the ball as Solomon was allowed to cut in on his right foot and hit a shot towards the back post that an unmarked Gnonto was able to head in from close brought on 16-year-old Harry Gray, brother of Tottenham's Archie and great-nephew of Leeds legend Eddie, for his debut in the final few full-time celebrations their fans turned their attention across the Pennines to Turf Moor where Burnley battled past the Blades with a result which sent both teams will look to move on quickly from this and welcome the Blades on Friday knowing a win will secure their place in the Championship for another season. Robins criticises 'fearful' Potters Leeds United boss Daniel Farke told BBC Radio Leeds:"To deliver such an emphatic performance is really amazing and all the credit goes to the boys for the way they have handled the situation and the spirit they have shown in recent weeks."It's the fate of a striker that sometimes you have a dry period or a dip in form. Joel had this but he has worked so hard and got himself out of it. "In the last few weeks his performances were better but the ball didn't want to go in the net. It's a bit like shaking a bottle of ketchup, all of a sudden everything comes out and that was a bit the case today.(On Harry Gray's debut) "I couldn't paint a better day for it to be honest. He wasn't just on the pitch because his name is Gray. I don't like to praise a young lad too early or too much but we believe in his potential. It was not a gift today, he has earned his position in the squad."Stoke City boss Mark Robins told BBC Radio Stoke:"We didn't compete. You can lose against anyone and especially to teams at the top of the league who will be in the Premier League next season but we gave them the freedom of the stadium. We didn't lay a glove on them."We made mistakes without trying to do something right. We looked fearful to take part in a game that we looked like we didn't belong in."I'm not going to over-react. You don't get too high or too low. I don't have the luxury of dwelling on it, I have to make sure we are back on it on Friday."Anyone who thought we were home and dry, that is a kick in the teeth. The performance wasn't befitting of anyone from any team let alone anyone from my Stoke City team."
Wales Online
23-04-2025
- Business
- Wales Online
Swansea City receive £2m Leeds United cash injection but it's not that straightforward
Swansea City receive £2m Leeds United cash injection but it's not that straightforward The Swans have banked an extra injection of cash on the back of Leeds United's promotion back to the Premier League Joel Piroe has been in red hot form for Leeds United this season (Image: Leeds United via Getty Images ) Swansea City are set to bank £2m on the back of Leeds United's promotion back to the Premier League as part of a clause inserted in the sale of striker Joel Piroe. The Dutchman sealed a move to Elland Road back in 2023, in a move believed to be worth an initial £10m. As part of the deal, the Swans stood to bank an extra £2m should the Yorkshire club secure promotion back to the Premier League at any point during Piroe's four-year contract at the club. Piroe's red hot run of form in front of goal saw him end the Championship season as the league's top scorer, with 19 goals to his name. He signed off by smashing in four goals in the 6-0 hammering of Stoke City on Monday, a result that helped confirm their return to the top flight, and it seems the Swans will be sharing at least some of the spoils of that success. Sign up to our Swansea City newsletter here. However, it remains to be seen what sort of tangible impact, if any, that extra £2m will have, as Swansea gear up for a summer that could potentially define the course of the club for the next few years. Certainly the early indications suggest it's unlikely to drastically alter their transfer plans, with City still facing stiff financial challenges, despite a recent change in ownership. As such, the prospect of that cash being pumped directly into any potential transfer kitty seems, at this stage, pretty unlikely. Article continues below In announcing their latest set of accounts, the club recently revealed they had made a pre-tax loss of £15.2m for the year ending June 30 2024, a slight improvement on the £17.9m recorded for the previous year, but a result that has nevertheless sparked the need for further cost-cutting. "If we continue to operate the way we are, our playing budget will have to decrease in line with the regulations," CEO Tom Gorringe told a recent fans' forum. "That's why we talk about the changes to the business, the way we're operating and how we can be more efficient. All of those things are vital because they allow us to invest more money in the first team, which ultimately gives us a better chance of competing on the pitch." That message was echoed in a recent letter from co-owners Brett Cravatt and Jason Cohen earlier this month. "Our staff across all parts of the business will be tasked with increasing revenues and reducing costs because that has a real and direct impact on our ability to be successful," they said. While the extra cash injection clearly helps to ease some of the financial burden, it appears the impact on player recruitment will more than likely be pretty minimal. Nevertheless, there's an acceptance within the club's top brass that the club have to strengthen the squad, with director of football Richard Montague taking a leading role in using a data-based search for potential new recruits. "We have a new scouting team," Montague said recently. "It's been a huge part of my job is understanding the processes we're using in order to try and unearth players. We are more restricted than we were because of the EU rules. "Players sometimes need to meet a certain set of requirements. But the most important thing we need to be doing is to devote resources to help find players. There are scouts working very hard to watch players. Article continues below "There are data process in place. Our job is to blend those worlds together to make judgements on how they can make us better. All of that work is going on behind the scenes." Sign up to the Swansea City WhatsApp service to get breaking news and top stories sent to your phone
Express Tribune
23-04-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Leeds and Burnley promoted to EPL
Leeds United and Burnley won automatic promotion to the Premier League on Monday as faltering Sheffield United were forced to settle for a place in the Championship play-offs. Leeds, who have spent two seasons in the second tier of English football, humbled Stoke 6-0 at Elland Road, with Joel Piroe scoring four goals. Daniel Farke's men knew that if Chris Wilder's Sheffield side failed to beat Burnley in the later kick-off, they would be back in the Premier League. Burnley captain Josh Brownhill scored twice in a 2-1 win, securing promotion for his own side and Leeds. The two teams each have 94 points and neither can now be caught by third-placed Sheffield United (86), who have won just one of their past five games. Leeds, who suffered the agony of defeat to Southampton in last season's Championship play-off final at Wembley, made short work of Stoke. Dutch forward Piroe, who had not scored since late February, returned to form with a vengeance, celebrating a hat-trick in the 20th minute. Junior Firpo made it four and Piroe, the club's leading scorer this season, netted his fourth goal shortly before half-time. Wilfried Gnonto nodded a sixth in the 59th minute. Farke, who has previously managed Norwich in the Premier League, celebrated on the pitch with his players though the champagne was still on ice, at least for a few hours. But when the whistle blew at Turf Moor the Leeds players toasted their success with gusto. Captain Ethan Ampadu vowed that Leeds would still fight for the Championship title. "Very proud. A lot of positives," he told Sky Sports. "The celebrations are amazing. We've worked all year for this. "Not to put a dampener on it, we've still got another target we want to achieve, so we're going to enjoy tonight and then we're going to try and do the full thing." Leeds wobbled from the start of March, winning just one in six games, raising fears that they would again have to settle for a place in the play-offs. But the league's top-scorers, with 89 goals, have now won their past four games. 'Boring' Burnley Scott Parker's Burnley are nowhere near as prolific as their closest rivals but their superpower is their defence -- they have conceded just 15 goals all season. Brownhill broke the deadlock at Turf Moor in the 28th minute when he pounced from close range but the visitors were level just nine minutes later through Tom Cannon. But the skipper put Burnley back in front from the penalty spot before half-time and they held on to extend their unbeaten run to a club-record 31 games -- making an immediate return to the Premier League. "We've been written off so many times, people calling us boring. We've bored our way to the Premier League," said Brownhill. Parker has now taken three clubs up to the Premier League -- previously managing the feat with Fulham and Bournemouth. "It means everything," he said. "Set on a mission at the start of this year to get promoted. "Early on in the season, there were a lot of ups and downs and the journey we've been on is nothing short of incredible." Sheffield United were top of the Championship table at the end of last month before a collapse in form. The Blades are guaranteed to finish third but face a battle to secure a spot in the Premier League through the play-offs.
Observer
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Observer
Leeds, Burnley promoted to Premier League
LONDON: Leeds United and Burnley won promotion to the Premier League on Monday as faltering Sheffield United were forced to settle for a place in the Championship play-offs. Leeds, who last played in the top division in the 2022/23 season, humbled Stoke 6-0 at Elland Road, with Joel Piroe scoring four goals. Daniel Farke's men knew that if Sheffield United failed to beat Burnley in the later kick-off, they would be back in the Premier League. Captain Josh Brownhill scored twice for Scott Parker's Burnley, who have made an immediate return to the top flight. Leeds and Burnley both have 94 points and neither can now be caught by Chris Wilder's Sheffield United (86), who have won just one of their past five games. Leeds, who suffered the agony of defeat to Southampton in last season's Championship play-off final at Wembley, made short work of Stoke. Dutch forward Piroe, who had not scored since late February, returned to form with a vengeance, celebrating a hat-trick in the 20th minute. Junior Firpo made it four and Piroe, the club's leading scorer this season, netted his fourth goal shortly before half-time. The game was already long over as a contest but Wilfried Gnonto nodded a sixth goal in the 59th minute. Farke and his players celebrated in front of their passionate fans at the final whistle but the champagne is still on ice. The German, who has previously managed in the Premier League with Norwich, praised the way his team had coped with the pressure. "To deliver such an emphatic performance is really amazing and all the credit goes to the boys for the way they have handled the situation and the spirit they have shown in recent weeks," he told the BBC. "It's the fate of a striker that sometimes you have a dry period or a dip in form. Joel had this but he has worked so hard and got himself out of it. "In the last few weeks his performances were better but the ball didn't want to go in the net. It's a bit like shaking a bottle of ketchup — all of a sudden everything comes out and that was a bit the case today." Leeds wobbled from the start of March, winning just one in six games, raising fears that they would again have to settle for a place in the play-offs. But the league's top-scorers, with 89 goals, have now won their past four league games. SOLID BURNLEY Burnley are nowhere near as prolific as their closest rivals, whom they will battle for the Championship title, but their superpower is their defence — they have conceded just 15 goals all season. Brownhill broke the deadlock at Turf Moor in the 28th minute when he pounced from close range but the visitors were level just nine minutes later through Tom Cannon. But Brownhill put Burnley back in front from the penalty spot before half-time and there were no more goals. Burnley's players celebrated on the pitch at the final whistle — matched by the watching Leeds team at Elland Road. At the other end of the table, Mustapha Bundu scored twice to keep alive bottom side Plymouth's survival hopes in a 3-1 win against sixth-placed Coventry. There were also 3-1 victories for relegation-threatened Derby and Luton while Portsmouth sealed their safety with a 1-0 win against 10-man Watford. Middlesbrough's playoff hopes were dented by a damaging 2-1 loss at Sheffield on Wednesday. — AFP
BBC News
22-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Leeds promotion to earn Swans £2m from Piroe deal
Swansea City are in line to receive around £2m as part of a promotion clause in the deal that took striker Joel Piroe to Leeds joined Leeds from the Swans in 2023 in a transfer worth more than £10m, with a £2m payment if the Yorkshire club secured a return to the Premier League at any point during the striker's four-year 25-year-old scored four goals as Leeds thrashed Stoke City 6-0 on Monday as their promotion from the Championship was Whites' place in the top flight next season was secured later on Monday when Burnley beat third-placed Sheffield United, a win which also sent the Clarets is the top scorer in the Championship this season, with his haul against Stoke taking the Dutchman's total to 19 agreed a deal worth about £1m rising to £2m to sign former Netherlands Under-20s international Piroe from PSV Eindhoven in the summer of reached 20 goals in each of his two full seasons as a Swansea player.
