Newcastle United star makes Leeds United & Liverpool comparison with Elland Road & Anfield atmosphere claims

Newcastle United defender Kieran Trippier insists Elland Road is ‘up there’ with the best atmospheres in football.

The 33-year-old’s long and successful career has taken him to some iconic grounds across the Premier League and Championship, including the likes of Old Trafford, Anfield and Stamford Bridge. A brief spell at Atletico Madrid also allowed him the opportunity to play at Camp Nou and the Bernabeu, among others.

But it seems a more local offering has stuck in the full-back’s memory, with seven trips to Elland Road - including as the ‘home’ team during a 2018 World Cup warm-up friendly against Costa Rica - enough to convince him it is one of the best around. The defender was speaking ahead of England’s first friendly before this summer’s European Championships, which took place at Newcastle’s St James’ Park.

“I'd say Elland Road is up there,” Trippier told Channel 4 when asked about where produced the best atmosphere. “I've played against Leeds when I was at Burnley, Tottenham, and Newcastle (also Barnsley). I think that Leeds has really passionate fans. I think they've got great support there and I've managed to play there for England as well so I'd say Elland Road and I'd say Anfield as well.”

Trippier is not alone in singling out Leeds fans for their ability to generate an incredible atmosphere, with Manchester United treble-winning striker Andy Cole also naming Elland Road as one of his favourite grounds to play in. Although having scored five of his six goals against Leeds in West Yorkshire, the now retired marksman insisted he was not intimidated by the 36,000-plus inside.

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Those inside Elland Road have enjoyed some memorable moments this season, despite Leeds ultimately failing in their bid to achieve promotion. Victories over Norwich City and Leicester City under the lights stand out, with the stadium remaining full for the post-match rendition of ‘I Predict A Riot’ - a ritual that seemingly irked some opposition players and fans.

Plans to redevelop Elland Road are currently in place with council reports mooting attendance figures of between 50,000 and 60,000, with ticket demand far outweighing current supply. Last month’s play-off final defeat to Southampton consigned Leeds to another season of Championship football but chairman Paraag Marathe insists that will not halt plans to invest in the famous stadium.

"We have already earmarked a certain amount of investment to make some improvements at Elland Road, things that I know supporters have been asking for," he told the Yorkshire Evening Post recently. "And while it might be, you know, not the whole new shiny toy, we are doing different things like improving the bathrooms and improving different concourses and lounges and things like that. We've already earmarked investment that we're going to use for that.

"The bigger, greater development - we're still very much on the timeline and on the path to doing that," he said. "It's been reported that nothing is going to happen until we get to the Premier League. That's a little bit of a myth, at least for this season. What I mean is, all of the make-ready work that we have to do for shovels in the ground, it really didn't matter this season if we're in the Championship or the Premier League, there's still work to be done that we're doing anyway.”