Leeds United 1 Tottenham Hotspur 2: YEP video verdict

Yorkshire Evening Post

Leeds United writer Lee Sobot on the 2-1 defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur and the club's start to life back in the Premier League as the Whites head into the October international break.

Transcript

00:00Hello there, Lee Sobot of the Oxford Evening Post here from Ellen Road, just departing

00:05Ellen Road where Leeds United have fallen to a 2-1 defeat against Thomas Frank's Tottenham

00:11Hotspur side which has ended. Leeds United's long unbeaten league run here at Ellen Road

00:16and that was always going to come to an end at some stage you would have thought in the Premier

00:20League against teams of this caliber. But overall I think basically a missed opportunity is the way

00:27you would probably best look at this game. I think a draw against a side like Tottenham would probably

00:33have been seen as a very good result a bit like the previous weekend's draw against Bournemouth but

00:37even in that one that was a game where obviously Leeds were heading to victory right up until the end

00:41but to be honest Leeds have the chances to win this game never mind draw it and really I think as well

00:46as you know frustration with the referee which was very very clear at the end of the game and the big

00:51takeaway really here is probably just just not taking chances the stats show you that Leeds had

00:57just about twice as many attempts on goal as Tottenham you could argue that Tottenham probably

01:03maybe had the better chances but Leeds did have some good ones as well and that's the thing I think at

01:08the moment I think the feeling is is that Leeds will I don't think anyone takes anything for granted but

01:13it's looking pretty positive in terms of the fight to stay in the Premier League is still an awful long way to

01:18go obviously but I think there's a bit of a feeling that you know they can't continue to miss as many

01:24chances as they are doing and that might end up holding them back really and you know hopefully

01:28not but that's where it might start getting quite tight if they do miss more you know chances such

01:33as the ones again that they've missed here against Tottenham a very very entertaining game very very

01:39entertaining first half in particular the whole game really chances at both ends very very nearly

01:44deja vu Joe Roden is evidently becoming a massive threat at set pieces he always should have been

01:49really given his height and how good he is at headers but obviously scored against Bournemouth very

01:53very nearly got one again here in the early stage of the header from the Longstaff corner who looks

01:58like he's on corners that whacked back off the post chances at both ends and alas Spurs ended up going

02:04in front and both goals from Leeds really just giving the ball away a bit too easily and then not being able to

02:09deal with it I felt like Mahmoud Koudas is a very very good player for Tottenham and he was basically

02:14the difference really here I mean you left with the assist and the goal and provided the assist for

02:19the first goal playing Matthias Telling down the right Telling still had a bit of work to do um

02:23thumping shot took a deflection off Pascal Stroik whether that would have made too much of a difference

02:27I don't know but certainly would have helped Carl Darlow and that was 1-0 and you felt then obviously

02:32Leeds have got you know a bit of a mountain to climb really given that Spurs had a pretty good defensive

02:36record coming into this game but didn't take long for him to get back into it um and Jayden Bogle a

02:41player I'm always full of praise for I think most people are absolutely superb from cross from him

02:45into the mixer Calvert-Lewin nice bit of hold up play he'd already missed a decent chance um two misses

02:51for Calvert-Lewin today but again an overall good display so it's a bit of a sort of like you know two

02:57ways of looking at it with him but that was really really good hold up play from him in the box got the ball to

03:01Aronson a really good shot saved by Vicario but into the path of um Okafor and there he was to tap

03:07home and that was 1-1 and um there were chances then Leeds went for it the noise went up as you can

03:12imagine 1-1 at the break and you you just didn't really know what to expect in the second half it's

03:16just one of those games really that could have been anything um next goal was always going to be key

03:20and it was that man Mohamed Koudas who got it this time Leeds losing the ball um and the fullback

03:25position cutting inside past Gudmundsen and a really good shot into the opposite corner past

03:31Darlow who was basically a bit wrong-footed but probably might have beaten him anyway it was such

03:35a good direct shot and again a bit of a deflection um of Pascal Stroik who was unlucky to have deflections

03:40on on um on both goals so and that was where the scoring finished really it wasn't the end of the

03:44chances there was more chances after that um for both sides you can't just say it was chances for Leeds

03:49there were chances for Spurs as well Richarlison came on and had a really good one at the end they almost went

03:533-1 up straight after scoring when the ball went through the box but chances for Leeds too um and

03:58i think the two that really stand out um Calvert-Lewin um had another chance the first one he got it all

04:04wrong in the first half just sliced his shot wide the second one was a good save from Riccario towards

04:08the end of his legs that did look like it was going in decent save Daniel Farker went for it at the end

04:14went for broke as you can imagine threw on all his forwards um and it nearly paid off with Joel Peru with

04:19the sort of half volley um another one that looked in and that was also well saved um and then a couple

04:24of chances at the end um from corners and things like that but i mean yeah in the end a 2-1 defeat

04:28you know which is you know there's no disgrace in that against the Spurs side obviously going very

04:32very well but you know Leeds haven't come up here just to sort of like you know just you know stick

04:37around and nick points here and there they want to compete and that was very very much the message

04:41from Dominic Calvert-Lewin afterwards and from Daniel Farker who was full of praise for his side but

04:45ultimately he said himself i just missed too many chances and praise also for Leeds um from Thomas

04:51Frank who's obviously a very good guy and a very good manager um so it's what eight points is it i

04:55think um as they head off into the international break and this is on saturday evening obviously

05:00got sunday's games to come but they're going to be around about mid-table don't want to be slipping

05:04too much nearer towards the drop zone because it can soon start getting quite edgy um but you know

05:08they've obviously got the quality to compete and there's no doubt about that and it's you know generally

05:13speaking i would say about so far so good because they could be higher at the table and there's

05:17you know been chances where they could have got more points than they've got you know the Bournemouth

05:22game fulham away things like that um but um yeah i mean taking the chances is going to be key

05:27um whether that means playing more of Joel Peru who is described as the best finisher that Daniel

05:32Farker's ever worked with remains to be seen um but obviously Calvert-Lewin is a different player and

05:37his hold-up play is very very good um you know got to keep faith in that hopefully the goals will start

05:41coming in again for him soon um but that really it's not just him it has to be said there were

05:45other chances um you know missing the chances has been the theme here so yeah really i don't think

05:51anybody knew what to expect there was plenty of people fancied Leeds including myself i thought

05:55they might get the result today and really i don't know about should of they certainly could of they

05:59certainly had the chances too so yeah i think the bottom bottom line conclusion one that got away a

06:04bit fair play to Tottenham but Leeds you know showed what they can do just got to stick it in the

06:08back of the net a bit more it's finished here heading into the national break Leeds United one

06:12Tottenham Potspur two

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