Leeds United faced off against Millwall at Elland Road earlier tonight hoping to claim maximum points in front of the home supporters. The Whites saw more of the ball in the first half but couldn’t capitalise on their goal-scoring opportunities as they were toothless in front of goal. On the other end, Millwall managed to get a two-goal lead in the first 23 minutes via a goal each from Shaun Hutchinson and Jed Wallace. Marcelo Bielsa’s men had to go into the half-time break two goals down and had plenty to think about ahead of the second half.
The home side made a bright start after the half-time break and got a goal back courtesy of Patrick Bamford. Pablo Hernandez netted the equaliser just after the hour mark before Patrick Bamford struck again in the 66th minute to complete the turnaround. The West Yorkshire side managed to hang on to their narrow one-goal lead to emerge victorious with a hard-fought 3-2 scoreline.
Let’s take a look at how each Leeds United player performed during the match against Millwall.
GK: Kiko Casilla – 6/10
The Leeds goalie got beaten twice in the first half, but he showed strong character and managed to secure a clean sheet for his team after the half-time break.
RB: Luke Ayling – 7/10
He was a decent outlet for the Whites going forward and put in a tireless shift defensively as well. He supplied the ball in the lead-up to Bamford’s winning goal in the 66th minute.
CB: Ben White – 6/10
The English defensive ace had a quiet game but did enough in defence to earn the three points in the end.
CB: Liam Cooper – 5.5/10
The Whites centre-back made a few unfortunate errors in the first half but came back stronger in the second 45 minutes and helped his side pull off a surprise comeback.
LB: Ezgjan Alioski – 7/10
He came alive in the second half and made some driving runs down the left flank. He also focussed on whipping in some inviting crosses into the opposition penalty box.
CDM: Mateusz Klich – 7/10
The Polish midfield ace was always willing to chase down lost causes and won a lot of 50-50 midfield battles in the second half.
RM: Hélder Costa – 7/10
The Portuguese winger was toothless in the first half, and he managed to put in a matured display in the second.
CM: Stuart Dallas – 7/10
The Northern Irish midfielder showed great energy in midfield and never gave up even when he was outnumbered and put under severe pressure by the opposition.
CM: Pablo Hernández – 7/10
He popped up with the all-important equaliser just when his team needed him the most. Hernandez was a menace in the opposition half and inspired his teammates to pull off an unlikely second-half comeback.
LM: Jack Harrison – 6/10
He was very quiet in the first 45 and struggled to get into the game. He put in a much-improved shift after the half-time break.
ST: Patrick Bamford – 7.5/10
He worked hard but struggled to get going in the first half. However, the Whites centre-forward managed to score a quick-fire brace to help his side to another three points at Elland Road.
Substitutes:
CM: Jamie Shackleton – N/A
Not enough time to make an impact.
