Leeds United didn't prove themselves too good for relegation fight but that wasn't the job against Watford - Graham Smyth's Verdict - YEP 3/10/21
The job for Leeds United against Watford at Elland Road wasn't to prove they are too good to drop out of the Premier League.
By Graham Smyth
Tomorrow can look after itself and Marcelo Bielsa has always
been one to keep Leeds living in the moment, devoting all their attention to
the most immediate challenge and emptying themselves in the pursuit of rewards
available right here and now. Besides, the season is but seven games old and
even at this stage there are only a handful of teams who have the luxury of
being able to say with complete confidence they will remain in the division.
The relegation fight involves almost everyone, until a certain amount of time
has passed.
The job wasn't even to produce a performance that would calm
everyone's nerves ahead of the international break, a void that would have been
filled with wailing and gnashing of teeth had they failed to win.
When the worst case scenario is all but unthinkable, why
give it any thought?
The job was simply to prove themselves better than Watford
for 90 minutes, plus a few extra. It should have been so much more comfortable
than it was as the game headed into those extra minutes but by the time referee
Simon Hooper finally blew his whistle, it was job done.
It was not a perfect performance by any stretch - Leeds
showed a wastefulness that was reminiscent of Championship days and they did
briefly threaten to allow Watford an ill-deserved route back into the game in
the second half, but when your first six league games went by without a win, a
few nerves are to be expected holding the most slender of leads in time added
on.
The Watford verdict #lufc https://t.co/WOr9vqV0yv
— Leeds United News (@LeedsUnitedYEP) October 2, 2021
But three points was the perfect result, even if by a 1-0
scoreline. Those three points were precious, hard earned and fully deserved.
Raphinha began the afternoon in a playful mood, dancing his
way into the corridors of Elland Road as Leeds arrived at the stadium and
kicking a ball against the backside of Kalvin Phillips as they warmed up. He
ended the afternoon on his haunches having given every ounce of energy for a
win, elated but unable to muster the energy to give his feeling physical form.
A player who can marry flair and hard work is, in Bielsa's
words 'not common' and he was a menace against Watford, whether going towards
their goal or tracking back towards his own.
Raphinha and Phillips, who was in cruise control yet again,
made sure Leeds were better than Watford and not just a bit better, but
markedly superior.
They, along with Illan Meslier, are what you might call the
marquee players at Leeds and their presence in itself should give everyone a
measure of confidence that this season can play out positively, but while the
Brazilian and the England international were especially good against Watford,
many hands contributed to the completion of the job.
There were signs of improvement in a number of individual
performances but it was a solid team effort.
Diego Llorente, back from yet another injury, showed how
important he might be if Leeds manage to keep him fit.
He was straight into it, passing through lines to find the
feet of Stuart Dallas, who looked a lot more like himself and popped up
everywhere in a first half that saw Leeds swarm the Hornets.
Leeds carried a threat down both flanks, wingers Raphinha
and Daniel James seeing early shots blocked. Off the ball, James was using his
pace to terrify defenders, William Ekong coughing up possession under the
pressure allowing Dallas to nip in and force a good save from Ben Foster.
When they had the ball, which was often in the first half,
Leeds were fluid, showing neat interplay. Junior Firpo found Mateusz Klich, he
teed up Dallas but the shot was high. Between them, Klich, Dallas and Phillips
got hold of the midfield and would not let go.
Their lightning quick start deserved a goal and it came on
18 minutes, Juraj Kucka making a hash of his header as Raphinha curled in a
corner, Llorente seizing gleefully on the chance to mark his latest comeback
with a smart finish.
Elland Road relaxed, instantly, but not completely. They wanted
more.
A loud penalty shout for James had the Leeds bench off their
feet to remonstrate with the fourth official, but Bielsa remained unmoved. He
liked what he was seeing - White shirts dominating possession and playing the
game in the Watford half, finishing attacks with shots that meant there was
little hope of a breakaway for the visitors.
Rodrigo's clever dummy allowed Dallas another go, which was
blocked. The Spanish forward was linking up well with the midfield and the
wingers, slotting Raphinha into the area where he went round Foster only to
find the side netting from a near impossible angle.
There were a couple of little warnings, sloppy moments that
gave Watford half a sniff of goal, yet Meslier remained a spectator and Leeds
were enjoying minutes, not moments.
Raphinha's world-class swerving ball into the path of
Rodrigo was exactly what Watford lacked, but their star right winger was being
kept honest and anonymous by Junior Firpo.
On the other side of the Leeds defence Jamie Shackleton was
looking after the ball, winning duels and playing sensible football.
As the sides went in at the break there was a stark contrast
in the body language of the two teams.
And even though the second half was not quite as good for
Leeds, they remained the better side and always looked as if they had a plan.
By comparison, Watford's was near impossible to identify until the final
minutes when they went direct in search of a late leveller.
Dallas continued to pop up in the right places, driving onto
a loose ball after Rodrigo failed to squeeze a pass through to the unmarked
Raphinha, the Northern Irishman's route to goal blocked once more.
James' pace was still an issue, forcing Kiko Femenia into a
rugby tackle that brought a yellow, but his desire was a problem for Watford
too. Out-hustling Sarr to reach the ball first and draw a foul put a second
visitor in the book.
Xisco Munoz' men did eventually have a little spell of their
own, more through Leeds errors than their own ideas, and Meslier had to risk a
clattering to deny Emmanuel Dennis at the back post. He duly dropped the
ensuing corner and the ball ended up in the net, only for Hooper to award a
free-kick to Leeds for Christian Kabasele's challenge on Liam Cooper.
The final quarter of an hour was messier than it had to be.
Dallas was forced off with a knock to be replaced by Tyler
Roberts and he gave Leeds a serious threat, counter attacking well and then
seeing two efforts cleared off the line.
By never really killing the game, there was always a slight
risk of a sting in the tail and nervous-looking misplaced passes offered hope
to Watford. But with Cooper in no mood to let this one get away, blocking shots
like his life depended on it, and Roberts taking pressure off with good
decisions on the ball, the full-time whistle brought sweet relief.
The next task is to prove they are better than Southampton in
a fortnight. Ticking off the jobs, one by one, is how Leeds will prove they
still belong to ply their trade among the elite. They have now at least, at
last, made a start.
