Leeds United and Burnley commit crime against football but who stands trial? Graham Smyth's Verdict — YEP 28/1/25
By Graham Smyth
Leeds United's 0-0 draw at Burnley was a crime against
football of the most egregious nature but who should stand trial?
Everyone expected a tight game when Daniel Farke's
league-leading top goalscorers visited the Championship's best defence but it
didn't have to be one of the most boring Whites games in recent memory.
Sheffield United and Sunderland dropping points presented an
opportunity for Leeds to pull away. For Burnley this was a chance to reel the
leaders back in. There's no doubt that the side sitting top were the ones to be
shot at because to be the king you've got to kill the king, but there was a
statement to be made by either side. Yet by the time Turf Moor had emptied one
side had said little more than 'actually we're fine with a point in front of
our own fans.' They didn't shoot at goal let alone shoot their shot at the
league leaders.
It became clear long ago that very few teams in the
Championship are willing to take many risks against Daniel Farke's Whites, for
fear of being torn asunder by his attacking players. Scott Parker and Burnley
took none. That fact, combined with their creditable defensive organisation and
the solitary save of James Trafford meant a 0-0 scoreline was all but
inevitable.
It takes two to tango. Farke could have gone with a more
offensive line-up. He could have brought in Junior Firpo for Sam Byram and kept
forward-thinking Joe Rothwell in the midfield rather than defensive specialist
Ilia Gruev. Leeds were untidy in the final third and definitely played safe at
times, so the monotony that played out was a crime of joint enterprise but even
that one, late Daniel James shot that finally forced Trafford into action
presented an argument that Parker was the ringleader and most culpable for the
Championship's big game being such a big disappointment.
How do Burnley fans get to sleep at night? They watch
Burnley. Speak to Turf Moor regulars and they will tell you that the atmosphere
is largely flat and the lack of goals and chances make for a hard watch. Leeds
fans have, justifiably, complained about the entertainment factor at times this
season but Elland Road has seen twice as many home league wins as Turf Moor.
The Whites have scored 35 at home compared with Burnley's 15.
The problem is that Parker's football works. It strangles a
game so completely that opposition sides simply cannot score goals. And then
even when they do get gilt-edged chances, like Sunderland did with a pair of
spot-kicks, Trafford is there with heroics. There is, with all due respect, a
lot of dross in the division and Parker knows that if Burnley don't nick a win
at home then they'll draw because they so effectively shut down opposition
offences. Who can really complain about being unbeaten at home, third in the
table and just three points off the top at this stage?
The other problem is that football has been allowed to
become so results-focused and promotion from the Championship has become so
financially significant that an entire season and a year in the life of a
supporter can now be explained away under the phrase 'getting the job done.'
It's a very transactional thing. Strictly business. Get the points, get out of
the league. Function over fun. It's not Parker or Farke's fault that a
relegated club faces a race against time to scramble back up the ladder before
the parachute payments run out. It's not their fault that managers are judged
so brutally and almost entirely on results. Taking risks in possession might
give the rest of us a bit of a thrill, but when it's their livelihood hanging
in the balance and when you can play safe and still sit up near the top then
can anyone be blamed for setting up to be solid?
That's what Parker did, as expected with his Burnley team.
Farke did too but at least Leeds had a little go. After a nervy couple of
minutes in which Ethan Ampadu was uncharacteristically wayward with passes to
the wings, Leeds began to look the more dangerous. Or maybe the more willing to
attack. Jayden Bogle was one of few players on the pitch with a bit of urgency
and adventure about him and he was at the heart of anything promising the
visitors offered up.
Burnley's best and only real moment came when ex-Leeds men
Connor Roberts and Jaidon Anthony linked up so the latter could cross, with
Zian Flemming heading wide.
The game settled into a bit of a pattern. Leeds had more of
the ball but did little with it. Burnley mustered a few crosses. A minute of
additional time at the end of the first half was more of a cruelty to the
paying public than an opportunity for either side to give them something worth
watching.
Farke said prior to the game that he prefers being top and
being chased to having to do the chasing. The second half said that Burnley
were content to sit back and do precisely no chasing. Leeds were in control and
giving an impression, if nothing else, that they wanted to win it. They just
didn’t go gung-ho, because that was not and is never really Farke’s plan. The
Clarets did eventually give Illan Meslier something to do in the 68th minute
but his smart leg save from Anthony's drilled effort didn't count because the
attacker had nudged last man Joe Rodon to concede a free-kick.
Leeds registered a shot that did actually count in the 88th
minute and it very nearly pinched the points. Gruev's corner came all the way
through to James and he uncorked a beautifully-struck half volley that Trafford
did well to palm over.