Leeds United balancing act and a temptation to get sniffy — Graham Smyth's Everton Verdict — YEP 27/1/26

By Graham Smyth

The Verdict on Leeds United’s 1-1 Premier League draw at Everton on Monday.

Leeds United cannot turn their noses up at what they took home from one of the Premier League's fine and fancy establishments.

Everton have been pretty indifferent this season as their Premier League position showed prior to welcoming the Yorkshire hordes to Merseyside. They are yet to grace their brand new stadium at Bramley Dock with exactly what Toffees supporters want to see on a regular basis and this game completed an aesthetically pleasing sequence of home results - won four, drawn four, lost four. Consistently inconsistent, perhaps.

But this is still Everton, stalwarts of the Premier League, a club who have circled the drain but found a way to stay at the top level. David Moyes knows a lot about a lot. And dotted around a squad full of top flight experience are star men like Iliman Ndiaye. AFCON winner and ball-carrying genius. Ndiaye's first run in the opening couple of minutes showed how dangerous he can be, taking the ball out of a pocket of pressure and into space. He won a throw, from that Everton won a corner. And that was about that from the hosts and their Senegalese winger in the first half, because Leeds simply took over.

It was evident from the off that Leeds felt comfortable playing out, Pascal Struijk stepping forward into midfield to carry or pass the ball. The centre-back's adventuring afforded him the first shot of the game, a forgettable strike though it was. A far better chance followed, Anton Stach's clever poke putting Dominic Calvert-Lewin in a great position in the box only for the onrushing Jordan Pickford to block.

But with the midfield completely dominating central areas, Struijk roaming to progress the ball and Brenden Aaronson popping up everywhere, Leeds continued to create pressure. The American picked out Jayden Bogle perfectly in the box and the right wing-back managed to get in the way of James Justin's shot. Both wing-backs were undeterred, putting together impressive respective first halves and were soon back on the same page.

It was quickly becoming a performance of complete balance. Leeds played long when they had to but took risks when they sensed it was on. They won the physical battle to earn the right to play, making Everton look ordinary in the process. Some of the moves that came down the left in particular were as picturesque as the shiny new surroundings.

And when the opener came it was through a balance of brawn and brain. Joe Rodon smashed into an aerial challenge to leave Ndiaye on the deck and put Leeds on the attack. Stach’s ball into the area was a dangerous one, Calvert-Lewin's movement took Everton's last defensive hope out of the equation and either Aaronson or Justin could have finished it. Aaronson left it, showing a clarity that has been lacking at times in crucial moments, and Justin supplied the finish of a seasoned centre forward.

There seemed little reason to change what was working and Leeds continued to plough a successful furrow down the right. Karl Darlow found Aaronson in the middle, he slotted it to Bogle and another wicked cross was met by Calvert-Lewin, the post denying the visitors a second.

Frustration was creeping in on and off the pitch for Everton. An insipid performance and total control from the men in white was only inspiring the home fans to get on their side's case. Their only encouragement in the final seconds of the half came from careless Leeds passes, yet without chances arising the half-time whistle still brought boos.

Everton half-time changes altered momentum

It was no surprise that David Moyes tried to change things at the break because what preceded it was far from acceptable. On came Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Jarrad Branthwaite and it was evident that Leeds were not going to have it all their own way for much longer. They still threatened now and again on the counter - Stach drew a save from Pickford - but it was going to be a half of defensive work. Left and right they shifted to front up to the pressure and keep Everton away from the penalty area. The hosts resorted to clipped balls over the top a few times to try and bypass the white wall, without any real joy.

When Everton did create they still found no way through. Ndiaye jinked inside Struijk to carve out a shooting chance and Bornauw got a foot in to block. Thierno Barry bent one for the far corner with the outside of his boot and Darlow threw himself full across his goal to palm it away.

In terms of balance, Leeds were beginning to tilt too much one way. They were being forced back, forced to defend and failed to take a number of chances to put a foot on the ball and calm things down. The ball just kept coming back. Ilia Gruev and Stach had both picked up quick yellow cards in the early stages of the half and with the need to do a bit more in possession, Farke responded with Ao Tanaka, replacing Gruev. The Japan international was unable to deliver the desired effect, however. Nor was he able to complete his first major defensive assignment. He tracked Idrissa Gana Gueye towards the corner but didn't stop the cross and Barry got in front of Bornauw to turn it high into the net.

Suddenly it was a different game. A different Everton. They attacked again off a Struijk slip and Gueye thumped a shot off the crossbar with Darlow beaten. It was a different Hill Dickinson Stadium, too. Momentum was all with the hosts. It called for something different from Farke and though he waited as long as the 85th minute, his decision was to make a triple swap and alter the formation. Facundo Buonanotte got a debut, Sean Longstaff came into the midfield too and Noah Okafor presented the counter attacking threat.

Had Longstaff been more composed after Okafor raced down the middle to slot his fellow substitute into the area, Farke might have been hailed as a genius. The finish was wild, however, and the game stayed in the balance.

But Leeds were at least on the front foot a little more as the game neared its death and play was no longer exclusively concentrated in their half of the pitch. They won a pair of corners in stoppage time, neither of which brought a winner and the result in the end was a fair one. A balanced one. And for a newly promoted side to completely dominate an entire half against an established Premier League club, managed by such a wily, experienced operator should not be sniffed at. Leeds have lost just once in nine but they cannot get ideas above their station just yet. They are still the new boys with it all to do. Drawing away and winning the winnable home games will be good enough and it has to be so regarded.