Inside Futbol
·9 April 2025
Game Decides, Not You – Leeds United Legend Warns Tottenham Loan Star

Inside Futbol
·9 April 2025
George Wood/Getty Images
Ex-Leeds United star Jon Newsome has warned Tottenham Hotspur loanee Manor Solomon that football is not a game where the player gets to choose moments when he will showcase himself; rather, it is the game that dictates when the player needs to step up.
Tottenham sent Solomon out on loan to Leeds in the summer and the winger has been featuring regularly for Daniel Farke’s side.
On Tuesday, it was Solomon who set up the ball for the winning goal for Daniel James against Middlesbrough to end Leeds’ three-game winless run.
However, there has been a question regarding Solomon’s work ethic in certain parts of the game, and Newsome admitted that the winger has quite a few times left Junior Firpo with problems to deal with due to his lack of running back to support the team.
Newsome warned the Tottenham star that football is not a game where he can pick and choose moments to step up; rather, he needs to follow the dictation of the game and do what is required of him.
The Leeds legend admitted that Solomon’s pass for James’ goal was excellent and added that the Spurs star did well in the first half.
“I thought he had a great first half I mean, let’s not forget it was his assist; it was his ball across for Dan James’ goal, which was superb; and the running behind was great”, Newsome on BBC Radio Leeds (5:30).
“But you cannot play when you want to play; the game dictates to you when you play, you don’t dictate to the game.
“I thought on a couple of occasions he was caught out of position and he did not track back; he does cause Junior Firpo, who is not a defensive-minded full-back as it is, so he does cause him a problem.”
The 25-year-old so far has registered seven goals and eight assists in 34 league games for Leeds United this season.
Solomon will be looking to finish the season in a strong manner with Leeds before he returns to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer, with the Whites having no option to buy in the deal.