Leeds United will head into the final international break of the year in good spirits after beating Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 at Elland Road on Saturday afternoon.
The Whites go into the break with three wins, five draws, and two defeats from the opening ten matches of the Premier League season, which is a very respectable first chunk of the campaign.
Daniel Farke‘s side were desperately in need of a win, though, as they had failed to win any of their previous five outings in the top-flight prior to the clash with Spurs.
The German head coach will, therefore, be delighted with the manner of his side’s performance and the result that they earned through their hard work.
Why Leeds were frustrated at half-time
Leeds and their supporters had a right to be frustrated with the first half of the game, though, because of both the team’s performance and a big call by the referee.
The Whites felt that they should have had a penalty when Mateus Fernandes stretched his arm out and blocked a cross, but neither the referee nor VAR deemed it to be a penalty.
It was not just that decision that frustrated the home side, though, as the lack of accuracy on balls into the box was disappointing, particularly in the first half, as Leeds ended the game with five out of 29 crosses finding a white shirt.
Those frustrations were washed away in the second half, thankfully, as Noah Okafor came off the bench to seal all three points in the 79th minute of the match.
How Noah Okafor won the game for Leeds
The Switzerland international was left on the bench from the start because Farke opted to go with Lukas Nmecha and Dominic Calvert-Lewin in tandem at the top end of the pitch.
What that meant was that the former AC Milan man was able to come on with fresh legs against tired defenders and cause problems in the last 13 minutes.
Those fresh legs burst past Archie Gray and skipped past Rodrigo Bentancur on his way to firing the ball past Antonin Kinsky for the only goal of the game just two minutes after coming onto the field.
Okafor was sharper than two Spurs defenders and latched onto the loose ball before having the composure to fire in his second Premier League goal of the season, and Farke deserves the credit for having the nerve to keep him in reserve until the right moment.
Saved by Okafor: 4/10 Leeds star heading for the bench after Spurs
After losing four of his five duels, being dribbled past three times, and making an error that led to a goal off the bench against Bournemouth, Sean Longstaff was brought in for a start against Spurs.
Farke, somewhat surprisingly, said in the build-up to the game that he had been impressed by the midfielder’s recent contributions, and he rewarded him with a start on Saturday.
The former Newcastle United man, though, produced more of the same of what he showed off the bench against the Cherries, as he lost seven of his nine ground duels in 89 minutes on the pitch.
|
Vs Spurs |
Sean Longstaff |
|---|---|
|
Minutes |
89 |
|
Big chance missed |
1 |
|
Big chances created |
0 |
|
Pass accuracy |
88% |
|
Tackles + interceptions |
1 |
|
Dribbled past |
1x |
|
Duels won |
3/10 |
|
Ground duels won |
2/9 |
Longstaff was reliable enough with the ball at his feet, completing 88% of his attempted passes, and he does deserve credit for being dependable in possession.
However, his defensive work, as was the case against Bournemouth in the previous match, was not up to scratch, as he was dominated in physical duels by the Spurs players.
In fact, The Athletic’s Beren Cross noted in the second-half that the central midfielder had been “bullied” by Tottenham star Rodrigo Bentancur in the middle of the park.
FFC gave him a 4/10 player rating, after the Englishman lost possession 15 times in total, and he may be thankful that Okafor saved the day with a goal, as his performance could have faced more scrutiny if Leeds had not picked up such a positive result.
Now, Farke should consider dropping Longstaff back down to the bench on the other side of the international break after he failed to grasp his opportunity to impress.
