The long march to make Elland Road roar again... New owners vow to take Leeds back to the big time (but without the fish tanks!)



David Haigh knows where he wants to take Leeds United and is just as clear about where he won’t be taking them.

‘There’s a picture of a fish tank in one of the offices downstairs,’ he said, looking out from the directors’ lounge at the top of the East Stand. ‘It’s the one that symbolises what happened here a decade ago, when people gambled with this club’s future and famous, historic Leeds United so nearly went to the wall.

‘It acts as a constant reminder, like taking a picture of yourself in Speedos and sticking it on the fridge door so you don’t eat that extra slice of cake.

Local lad: David Haigh of Bahrain-based investment bank GFH Capital is set to be the new Leeds chairman

‘We won’t be going down that path again. We want to be in the Premier League now, not a few years down the line, and we are implementing plans to try to pack Elland Road to the rafters every game. But the route we take must be sustainable.’

The tale of the rented fish tank still irks then-chairman Peter Ridsdale, who argues indignantly that the £20 monthly cost scarcely tipped Leeds over the edge. He misses the point. Having even the boardroom goldfish on tick says everything about a level of profligacy that almost ruined Leeds and is the antithesis of what new owners GFH Capital stand for.

Haigh is the public face of the Bahrain-based investment bank and is adamant they can take Leeds back to former heights while still paying their way. The second part stems from being schooled in finance, the first from an allegiance to his home club.

Salford-born but raised in his early years in Beeston, a stone’s throw from Elland Road, the 34-year old provided an insight into his background and took Sportsmail on an eventful journey through the 12 months since an initial meeting with Ken Bates that ultimately led to ownership changing hands.

Fallen giant: The passion of Leeds' support is well known but the club is a shadow of its former self

‘My great-grandmother was an immigrant from Russia,’ he said. ‘She escaped the revolution and moved here. This is where I spent my early childhood, right on the doorstep of Elland Road, and though we moved when I was five or six, I had already been to games, perched on my granddad’s shoulders near the halfway line.

‘I was hooked and that’s why the Leeds proposal took my eye. I kept nudging it to the top of the file on our desk in Bahrain. Finally, a meeting with Ken was set up in Monaco, and it was something that will stay ingrained in my mind. It was basically Islamic Bank meets Ken and wants to buy his club, and it was just so different to what he was used to.’

Haigh revealed that rather than getting down to business, discussions actually began with a joke between the two men.

‘The first thing he did was look me up and down and say, “And how old are you?” I replied, “Three times younger than you”, and I think that cheeky answer broke the ice. It was still tough and I left three hours later feeling there was a lot to be done. To be fair to Ken, he wanted his legacy protected. He believes he saved the club from liquidation and wanted to be sure he was passing the baton to someone who could take it to the next level.

‘Those visits to Monaco were exciting, but coming for my first game in the directors’ seats, against Wolves, and remembering sitting on my grandad’s shoulders was one of those moments that live with you. I couldn’t resist taking a photo on my phone and sending it to my mum, with a message saying, “You’ll never guess where I am!”

From Beeston to Bahrain: Haigh was born a stone's throw away from Elland Road, and watched Leeds as a kid

Grand design: Haigh wants Leeds back in the Premier League for the first time since 2004

But Haigh soon found he didn’t need to be in Elland Road to understand the size of the Leeds following. ‘This is one of the best clubs in the world. I knew that, but there was a reminder the other week after I finished a gruelling sledge trek over 300 kilometres for the Make A Wish Foundation. We got back to Tromso and found a bar. I realised there were 15-20 people milling round the table. On closer inspection, they were all wearing the white rose.

‘They were Leeds fans. Locals, but Leeds fanatics of all ages, from 18 up to 65. We were about 250 kilometres inside the Arctic Circle yet I had been spotted and was being quizzed about all things Leeds. It underlined the global nature of our support.

And he received an even bigger shock when back in Leeds. ‘Closer to home, I walked round the city and was horrified to see 12-year-olds wearing Manchester City shirts,’ he said. ‘It’s like Leeds United has been lost from their DNA and that has to change. We need to re-engage the community but focus on the kids.

‘We have just launched a Taking It To The Kids initiative, with players like Sam Byram and coaches visiting every junior school in the area. The intention is to engage with every kid at every school, and we have already ploughed a couple of hundred grand into it to show we are serious about making it work.

Big spenders: Leeds reached the Champions League semi-final in 2001 but paid for their financial profligacy

‘Season-ticket prices have come down as well because we want Elland Road full. Gary Speed was my favourite player, but I think back to Tony Yeboah’s goals and how they raised the roof — that’s what we want to recreate. We’ve got the right manager to take us to the next level in Brian McDermott, and we want the roar of a full Elland Road to go with it.

‘I believe we will restore this club to where it once was, and there was a flavour of it in the cup-tie against Chelsea. Even Ken was getting excited. I’m forever jumping up when we score, and he always says, “David, be dignified, sit down”. But when we went in front, he was on his feet, cheering as loudly as anyone.