Leeds United 0 Sunderland 0: Sea gets rougher for Daniel Farke as Whites produce jaded display - and also have no luck after failure to award late penalty — Yorkshire Post 9/4/24
By Leon Wobschall
Fast forward almost 51 years and the odds on another
Wearsiders’ victory against an upwardly-mobile Leeds side in their latest
meeting weren’t quite as long as on that famous afternoon at the home of
football.
But in the context of the Championship’s captivating
automatic promotion story of 2023-24, a Sunderland win would certainly have
constituted a seismic moment - at Leeds’ expense.
In the event, it ended in a draw and that was a surprise
enough. An unwelcome one.
Leeds’s form after the international break continues to be
stodgy and the main positive on the night was another shock in terms of
Leicester’s defeat at Millwall.
It was not an occasion for United’s much-vaunted attack,
with Daniel Farke possibly having a big selection call or two for the weekend.
The Leeds chief spoke about getting the best out of himself
when the ‘sea is rough’. Well, things have just got a tad choppier.
On an evening when Leeds were chasing a tenth successive
home win in the top-two divisions for the first time, they were well off their
high standards.
That said, they should have been afforded a lifeline in the
final quarter when Sunderland captain Luke O’Nien failed to be penalised for a
clear handball. Leeds might have got away with a dodgy night then, but didn’t.
A meagre return of one win in their previous 10 matches and
status as being the second worst side in the division’s latest 10-match form
guide against a rival who were second, by contrast, suggested beforehand that
Sunderland were on a bit of a hiding to nothing in truth.
As most observers have no doubt realised, the Championship
can be a strange beast at times.
The team who had the tempo and the conviction were in
Sunderland jerseys in the first half with Leeds - fresh from their surprise
weekend loss at Coventry - looking off colour and leggy, with their passing too
lateral and their intensity being worryingly passive.
Sunderland’s set-up without the ball in a five-man defence
that included a full debutant in Timothee Pembele - with Barnsley loanee Callum
Styles deployed as a left wingback on the opposite flank to Pembele - worked
very nicely indeed from their perspective.
Not having a centre forward did not particularly stymie them
either as they had a weapon out wide in the shape of a player well versed with
Elland Road in Jack Clarke.
Defensively, the Wearsiders clogged up the spaces in which
Crysencio Summerville, Georginio Rutter and Dan James like to operate in a half
in which the hosts mustered no so much as an effort on target.
When Leeds had opportunities from corners, there was little
threat, while the options taken in open play often were not the best, a case in
point being a poor decision from Patrick Bamford just before the break with
Sunderland looking in danger with keeper Anthony Patterson out of his goal.
Summerville got away from his main marker in Trai Hume just
the once, cutting inside in that elegant way in which he can before firing
wide. A rasper from Rutter flew just over, but in truth there was little else
from those in white shirts, attacking the Kop in the first period - in a
desperately disappointing offering.
The one consolation is that they did not trail.
Sunderland’s young guns grew in confidence as United’s gun
players were subdued.
Once of these parts, Clarke had his moments and posed more
problems for Archie Gray as the half transpired.
Chris Rigg, a mere slip of a lad at 16, fired one crisp shot
over before Clarke wriggled away from Gray before the alert Illan Meslier
blocked his effort with his legs.
Earlier, Clarke had headed over following a well-struck
cross from Pembele.
One hope for Leeds was Sunderland defender Daniel Ballard,
booked after a couple of fouls on Bamford and pushing his luck if the
misdemeanours continued.
On the redemption, the onus was on Leeds to show their true
selves in a 2024 which has been pretty stellar, aside from a blip at the
weekend.
Leeds needed the oxygen from their crowd, but also needed to
give them something to buy into on the restart.
The opening sparrings of the second half did not overly hint
at change, with several home substitutes soon told to warm up and do a few
stretches.
Those on the pitch may just have realised.
Leeds upped it, thankfully. Appeals for a penalty were sound
after Ballard nudged over James after he burst into the box - but the Leeds
player had unfortunately just drifted offside and the flag was raised.
The ball then almost broke for Summerville before he found
Rutter, who fired over at the near post under pressure.
At the other end, excellent covering from Ampadu - who
shrugged off a bout of illness to start - cleared Clarke's dangerous centre and
atone for his earlier loose pass.
Leeds were edging closer. After Jobe Bellingham’s crude foul
on James, Summerville’s well-flighted free-kick into the side-netting instead
of the near post.
Farke resisted the urge for replacements at this stage.
Wilfried Gnonto eventually got the call on 71 minutes,
shortly after Meslier was called into action to turn away Patrick Roberts’
free-kick after Junior Firpo was penalised for a trip on Hume.
Sunderland then had a major reprieve as the clock started to
tick when O’Nien was not penalised for a clear handball in the box after
challenging Rodon in the air following a corner. Home players were aghast and
Farke was also non-plussed.
More changes arrived at the game moved into the final 10
minutes of normal time.
The narrative did not shift. There was no winner.