Leeds United head into the international break still without a win in the Premier League this season following a tired performance at Turf Moor that lacked inspiration against Sean Dyche’s Burnley.
Chris Wood stuck out a boot to deflect a Matt Lowton shot past Illan Meslier early in the second half, before Patrick Bamford did similar at the other end late on – two scrambled goals befitting a largely unwatchable spectacle.
Leeds have become known under Marcelo Bielsa for deploying tub-thumping attacking football and indeed dismantled Burnley when these sides met in Lancashire back in May. But Dyche’s men were alive to that threat and largely stifled the likes of Raphinha and Bamford.
And in a new era where match officials deploy the lighter touch when it comes to fouls and cautions, both teams could have seen red had VAR enjoyed the same freedoms of last season.
Here, i looks at the five notable performances in Leeds’ laborious draw that sees the Whites move to 15th in the table…
Kalvin Phillips – 6/10
Still getting back to full fitness following a gruelling summer, Phillips was tasked with acting as metronome to this Leeds side – a duty he usually does with ease. Sunday, however, saw Phillips struggle to pick out his usual long-range balls to the flanks. Leeds setting up with two wing-backs should have given the England man more opportunities to spread wide, but Burnley were persistent in their pressing and shut off the feed.
A late challenge on Ashley Barnes earned him a yellow that could have ended up being costly, but he timed a later tackle to perfection to stay on the right side of the law.
Jack Harrison – 7/10
Leeds’ only real outlet for any sustained period, Harrison was lively on the left and spent much of the first half running at Matthew Lowton. The final ball into Bamford and Rodrigo was either lacking or it wasn’t picked up by its target.
Harrison went quiet for a spell in the second half but was the driving force in the closing stages when Stuart Dallas supported him going forward. Leeds, though, fared much better when reverting to their familiar 4-1-4-1 and Harrison dropped back. Like Bamford and Raphinha, he was stuck on his own before the formation switch.
Rodrigo – 5/10
Leeds’ record signing has been at the club for a year now and bar a flurry of goals towards the back end of last season he hasn’t really proved value for money. Rodrigo is ideally a centre-forward but that position is Patrik Bamford’s. Fitting the Spaniard into this system, therefore, has proved tricky for Bielsa.
On Sunday Rodrigo played centrally – behind Bamford and ahead of Phillips – but provided little in terms of attacking threat. He was reduced to dropping further back to gain the ball, which left Phillips seeking space and Bamford stranded up top. Booked for a trip midway through the second half, Rodrigo once again cut a frustrated figure. He was replaced by Tyler Roberts 18 minutes from time.
Raphinha – 6/10
The Brazilian took weeks to fully fledge at Elland Road in his first season in English football. And Raphinha has started this campaign with just as much inconsistency. Leeds fans wouldn’t have believed at the start of this game that their former defender Charlie Taylor would handle Raphinha’s impish energy all afternoon. Well, until the 86th minute that it.
Raphinha finally got the better if his man in the build-up to Bamford’s leveller. But too often did he turn back to his defensive team-mates when collecting the ball on the whitewash.
Liam Cooper – 7/10
Question marks have hung over Cooper for much of this year following the gradual improvement and return to fitness of Leeds’ 2020 summer signings Diego Llorente and Robin Koch, not to mention Pascal Struijk’s progress over the past 12 months. Indeed, Cooper could be considered the fourth-choice centre-back at Leeds right now.
Yet he was the leader Leeds needed to cope with the robust Burnley set-piece at Turf Moor. Alert to danger and strong in the air, Cooper’s presence denied at least two free headers in the Leeds box.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3sYLcoh
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