A defeat to Sheffield United at Elland Road is not at all conclusive in dashing Leeds United’s automatic promotion hopes, but the Whites have now slipped to third with eight games remaining. The opportunities wasted during Saturday’s Yorkshire derby will haunt the players for quite some time.
Although the supporters might feel robbed after referee David Coote opted not to send off Sheffield star George Baldock earlier in the game, Marcelo Bielsa instead concentrated on the flaws and shortcomings of his side over the controversy.
“If we make a link between a decision which could have gone for us, you might think that with different decisions from the referee the game would have gone in our favour. But taking into account all that happened, we had all the resources to get a different result. That’s why we can’t say the referee had an impact.”
Stated the Argentine in his post-match interview (as quoted by The Daily Star) as he identified their lack of finishing as the reason for this weekend disappointment.
This, however, is indeed a worrying sign for Leeds United following the injury woe of Kemar Roofe. Patrick Bamford has done a decent job so far spearheading their attack as the lone center-forward, but the chances they have wasted are destined to make the job difficult in such tensed and close encounters.
Jack Harrison has shown a substantial improvement in the second half of the season and grabbed a regular role down the left-hand flank. But he once again missed a sitter in early minutes which could have changed the dynamic of the game. Tyler Roberts has been impressive since returning to first-team action following Roofe’s injury, but the young Welshman hit the woodwork and also failed to direct his header on target.
Pontus Jansson, on the other hand, is well-liked among the supporters for his commitment and passion towards the game. His towering presence at the back got overshadowed yesterday when he missed a simple finish in the dying moments of the match. The goal could have had salvaged a massive point allowing the Whites to retain their two-point lead intact over the Blades.
At the age of 33, Pablo Hernandez is still the nucleus of the team and an off-day at work makes the whole attacking set-up unstable and unimaginative. Bielsa, one of the pioneers of modern football, must be aware of it and should find a way out to grind out results to avoid the stress of playoffs.
