Good Morning. It's Monday 18th January, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road...
Brighton exacerbate Leeds United's January blues
Played 3, lost three, goals against 7, goals for 0. That's the grim reality of 2021; small mercies that Leeds midweek fixture against high flying Southampton has been postponed, and have time to regroup before their trip to St James Park Tuesday week.
Firstly lets analyse Saturdays game. I think it would be fair to say that Brighton looked both sharper, and hungrier. This should not have been the case having battled to the death against Manchester City just a few days before with a depleted squad which included five regulars being ruled out. Bearing this in mind, Leeds should have been all over the Seagulls, pushing, jostling and bullying their South Coast opponents into submission. Instead, we saw a Leeds side devoid of ideas, rudderless and playing like someone had slipped ketamine into their water bottles.
Can we blame the pitch? Up to an extent we can. What is the point of playing the way we do, when our home pitch benefits our opposition more than it does us? The difference between winning and losing in this league is so small, that any slight disadvantage could turn a game on its head. There is no way that Leeds fast moving, attractive style of play was going to work on the boggy marsh, that was Elland Road on Saturday. In his post match interview Bielsa was asked whether the pitch played an important role in the result. Polite as ever, the Argentine refused to answer,as it would sound like an excuse.
This was the Seagulls first win since November, and has moved them within six points of Leeds.
Post match reaction
Leeds Manager - Marcelo Bielsa
Brighton boss - Graham Potter
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