Sheffield Wednesday 0 Leeds United 2: Old-fashioned No 9 values make the difference in derby of tight margins — Yorkshire Post 8/3/24

Proper centre-forwards might be going out of fashion but they will always be able to win you games of football.

By Stuart Rayner

There was little to choose between relegation-threatened Sheffield Wednesday and promotion-chasing Leeds United on a nippy night at Hillsborough until the visiting No 9, Patrick Bamford, showed a moment of quick thinking and anticipation which all the best exponents of the dying art have.

Both have played there this season but neither Georginio Rutter, whose game has blossomed since he stopped leading the line and dropped into the hole, nor the diminutive Willy Gnonto are 24-carat No 9s but they showed some of the skills associated with what used to be football's most glamorous shirt to book Leeds' return to the Championship's automatic promotion places – at least for a few hours.

For 49 minutes it was a cagey and quite laboured Yorkshire derby but centre-forwards only need a second and a yard, and Bamford took both to break the deadlock on the stroke of half-time and from there the gap in the actual table, as opposed to the form table became more evident, if nowhere near as pronounced as the former would suggest.

If 2-0 was probably a fair reflection, it took a good bit of centre-back thinking by Ethan Ampadu to secure it as the Owls’ No 9, Michael Smith, threatened to find the net.

Leeds had largely to be looking to play over the Owls' back three and get Bamford in behind but although they were finding him, the defenders were able to catch him up before he could do anything of note.

Real centre-forwards, though, are quickest over a yard.

Brighter of mind as well as pink shirt, that is how much Bamford got on Akin Famewo when Junior Firpo put a lovely ball in to the far post, where the Leeds man tapped in from very close range.

The Owls had been marginally the better side until then – certainly for the first 35 minutes – showing flickers on the counter-attack even if they also played without much of the intensity their manager, Danny Rohl, loves to preach.

It took 18 minutes for the first save of note, but Illan Meslier made a good one, getting a hand to Djeidi Gassama's shot. When the corner was played to him, Liam Palmer shot over.

Twice in succession Wednesday attacks ran into Ampadu, the first when Anthony Musaba was set free after Firpo gave the ball up, the second when Pol Valentin accelerate into a dribble, only to hit a Welsh roadblock.

Ike Ugbo was doing a good job of winning the ball high up but when Musaba put the ball over, recalled right-back Archie Gray stopped Marvin Johnson getting on the end of it.

Late in a first half extended by Joe Rodon's head injury – he could have done without stooping into Ugbo's high boot in the second period – Leeds began to find chinks in the armour for the first time.

Gnonto, preferred to Dan James, cut inside only for multiple deflections to take all sting out of his effort. Rutter's lob was saved and Johnson blocked the follow-up.

Rutter headed over at a corner won by excellent build-up play between Gnonto and Gray.

Still it was a surprise when Bamford broke the deadlock but whether it was that Daniel Farke's half-time words, Leeds looked more energised after the break.

Rutter took the ball with his back to goal after 49 minutes and James Beadle did well to make a low save as he span and shot through legs.

Bambo Diaby had to intervene when the striker turned and sped past Barry Bannan.

Then the man whose game has gone up several notches since dropping into the hole behind a targetman found himself in his old position with his back to goal, from where he won a fight ball and turned it around the corner to Gnonto, who finished with the calm precision of a cold-eyed goalscorer.

With 58 minutes gone it looked game over and Wednesday's refusal to accept that, as well as their change of formation, only left them more vulnerable to Leeds' deadly counter-attacks.

Beadle made a good save one-on-one with Summerville after Diaby had unwisely tried to take the ball bast Rutter deep in his own half and Gnotno threaded a lovely pass.

But Smith thought he had scored when Meslier spilt Gassama's shot, only for Ampadu to see the danger and get back onto the line to clear.

Leeds (perfectly legitimately) staggering late substitutes to stop Wednesday building momentum was a nod to how hard they had been pushed, although one of them, Connor Roberts, was a whisker away from giving the scoreline a glossier look in stoppage time.

It was a 2-0 win of small margins, and Leeds had the old-fashioned attacking values to exploit them.