Everton 1 Leeds United 0: Leeds sleepwalking towards relegation after pitiful display as fans turn on board - Yorkshire Post 17/2/23
THIS was not as heavy as their defeat at Goodison Park last February, but it was just as excruciatingly bad.
By Leon Wobschall
Leeds United find themselves in the bottom three after this
wretched defeat and are sleepwalking towards relegation at this rate.
United supporters short-changed their admirable fans. Again.
They are ten games without a win in the Premier League and have swapped places
with Everton.
They are without a permanent manager and this was a
performance bereft of authority, punch and conviction.
They mustered not so much as one effort on target against a
supposed crisis club. Leeds fans were understandably angry. Chants of ‘Sack the
board’ and ‘Orta, time to go’ were audible in the second half.
One side looked a team and it was those in royal blue.
Everton – who won it through Seamus Coleman - were far from great, but were
together.
Somewhat predictably, it was tense, nervy and a bit fiery,
as reflecting the status of a huge football match. At half-time, it was
goalless - again not the biggest surprise - but Everton had reason to be the
happier after posting more of the threat from set-plays.
Leeds got into some half-decent situations on the counter,
but their execution and final ball and decision-making was lame. They needed to
do more.
Everton started slowly and their crowd, usually so raucous,
were taut. They would find their feet as the half progressed with Dwight McNeil
looking handy on the left flank and Amadou Onana getting into some good
positions in the final third.
The hosts mixed up play and Leeds had a let-off on 20
minutes when Illan Meslier spilled a high ball from just inside his own half
from Conor Coady and the ball would eventually break for Onana, but he
wastefully dallied and the chance was gone.
The moment at least enthused Evertonians and their rangy
midfielder then fired over around the half-hour mark after Leeds were carved
open on the right with Idrissa Gueye beating Max Wober too easily.
At the other end, Patrick Bamford dragged a shot wide before
Leeds survived a double scare in front of the Park End.
McNeil’s corner was flicked on by Coady with Wober clearing
off the line and the well-stationed Weston McKennie was alert to make sure Neal
Maupay’s follow-up did not go in.
Another corner almost saw the Blues profit when a header
from James Tarkowski - hero in the previous home game against Arsenal - was
beaten away by Meslier.
Everton were starting to apply the squeeze of sorts, before
tempers got heated close to the touchline where Leeds supporters were present,
with Tyler Adams and McNeil indulging in a game of shove, which was the cue to
a number of other players from both sides to get involved.
Referee Andy Madley booked Adams and McNeil for their part
in it, with Abdoulaye Doucoure, who looked particularly incensed, and McKennie
also cautioned.
McNeil looked the player most likely for Everton and he
fired a volley wide early in the second half as Everton attacked the Gwladys
Street end before Leeds countered nicely with Harrison combining with Bamford,
but the latter could not get a clean connection when well placed.
Everton looked the more likely, just about and a moment of
danger saw Maupay latch onto Vitali Mykolenko’s cross from the left and after
spinning and turning to manufacture space, his low shot was straight at
Meslier, fortunately.
The momentum was with the hosts and Evertonians started to
provide the fuel.
A nice exchange ended in Mykolenko firing at Meslier and
soon after, the Blues had their deserved lead, albeit in bizarre fashion.
Iwobi found Coleman down the right channel. With Meslier
expecting a cross, a yawning gap left his near post exposed with the Everton
veteran’s effort flying into the net in an awful moment for the visiting
keeper.
You waited for Leeds’s response. Unfortunately, you waited
and waited. Their deliveries from free-kicks was particularly frightful.