Archie Gray scores first senior goal as Daniel Farke's side come from behind — Mail 23/2/24
Leeds 3-1 Leicester: Archie Gray scores first senior goal as Daniel Farke's side come from behind to reduce the Foxes' lead at the top of the Championship to six points
Archie Gray scored the winner as Leeds came from behind to
beat Leicester
By ADAM SHERGOLD
Daniel insists winning the Championship title isn’t
important, so long as Leeds United still go up.
Clearly his players aren’t listening. This sensational
come-from-behind win before a euphoric Elland Road resurrected the race for the
No 1 spot.
One moment Leicester were 12 points clear and it seemed a
done deal. The next, Leeds were six behind and breathing down their neck. The
old place was shaking by the end.
Trailing to Wout Faes’ early header, Leeds should have been
dead and buried as Leicester spurned chance after chance.
But with 10 minutes left, Connor Roberts drilled home his
first goal for Leeds after Georginio Rutter weaved into Leicester’s box and the
ball took a ricochet off a defender.
The noise had barely abated when homegrown hero Archie Gray
won it three minutes later. The youngster’s shot took deflections off both
Hamza Choudhury and Faes to wrongfoot keeper Mads Hermansen.
In stoppage time, Dan James drilled home a free-kick to
settle it and the old place shook.
This was a ninth consecutive league win for Farke’s team -
equally a club record from 1931 - and it preserved their unbeaten season here.
Leicester were floored. Of course the title remains in their
own hands and they should still go up but a gap that stood at 17 points on New
Year’s Day is now uncomfortably tight.
It was the leaders who settled the quicker, looking slick in their passing and movement.
Ricardo Pereira made a free header from James Justin’s cross
too straightforward for Ilian Meslier, before the Leeds goalkeeper pulled off a
more demanding fingertip save to deny Patson Daka.
But Leicester made their breakthrough from the resulting
corner, puncturing a rowdy Elland Road atmosphere.
Dewsbury-Hall delivered short to the near post, where Daka
ran off marker Glen Kamara and flung himself at the ball ahead of Ilia Gruev to
get the flick on.
Leeds hadn’t picked up Faes at the back post and the
mop-haired Belgian stooped to head home.
Although there were grumblings among the home fans, Leeds
could have been level by the break.
Gnonto surged into Leicester’s box but took a heavy touch
cutting inside rather than shooting, before Jannik Vestergaard made a superb
last-ditch tackle to thwart Crysencio Summerville.
Farke’s side needed to find a higher gear after half-time
and Rutter shot over after Harry Winks gave the ball away in midfield.
But Leicester were still playing the more attractive
football and Meslier saved one-handed to deny the ever-willing Stephy Mavididi.
From a corner, Vestergaard rose highest to head against the
crossbar as Leeds switched off again from a set-piece before Daka put the ball
in the net from an offside position.
The Leicester man was nonplussed and replays showed the ball
dropped to him off Leeds man Rutter rather than a team-mate, making him onside.
Leicester continued to press and Mavididi’s pace took him
clear again from Dewsbury-Hall’s perfect pass but he fluffed the golden
one-on-one chance. Daka then missed an even better one, shooting embarrassingly
wide.