Leeds United 1 v Manchester United 1
Leeds United contested one of England's fiercest derbies vs Manchester United at Elland Road in the Premier League yesterday. The game ended 1-1 with both goals coming in a 3-minutes burst in the second half. It was Leeds United's third successive draw following a 0-0 draw at Anfield and a 1-1 draw against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. The result leaves Leeds eight points clear of the drop zone and Manchester United in 6th.
The match, played under bright but freezing winter conditions, was not a classic with several missed chances from both teams. Daniel Farke's Leeds, riding a seven-game unbeaten streak, took the lead through American winger Brenden Aaronson just after the hour mark, only for Matheus Cunha to equalize minutes later for Ruben Amorim's Red Devils.
Match Report
The game burst into life after the half-time interval. Leeds took the lead in the 62nd minute when 19-year-old defender Ayden Heaven misjudged a long ball, allowing Brenden Aaronson to race through and slot a fine finish past Senne Lammens in the United goal. The American international's strike ignited the near-40,000 crowd at Elland Road and seemed to set Leeds on course for a famous victory over their bitter rivals.
However, Manchester United responded swiftly. Just three minutes later, in the 65th minute, Matheus Cunha leveled the scores with a smart finish, capitalizing on Perri being caught in no man's land to poke home from close range. The quick equalizer shifted momentum, and United nearly went ahead when substitute Joshua Zirkzee set up the struggling Slovene Sesko, who dragged his effort wide. Leeds pushed for a winner late on, with substitute Joël Piroe curling a shot just over the bar. In stoppage time (90'+4), Anton Stach fired high and wide from outside the box, summing up a frantic but ultimately fruitless finale. The match ended 1-1, a fair reflection of an even, end-to-end contest marred by individual errors.
Post Match
More remarkable than the actual match maybe were the words of Manchester United's coach Ruben Amorim after the game. His 'I'm here to be manager, not coach' quote hints at problems behind the scenes at Old Trafford. In particular, there appear to be tensions between the Portuguese manager, who replaced Erik ten Hag in the hot seat, and director of football Jason Wilcox and United's head of recruitment, Christopher Vivell.
Update: Ruben Amorim was sacked the following day by Manchester United after 14 months in the job. He left with the worst win record of any Manchester United manager in the Premier League at just 32% and the worst clean sheet ratio at just 15%.
Line ups
Leeds: Perri; Justin, Bornauw, Bijol, Struijk, Gudmundsson; Gruev, Stach, Aaronson; Okafor, Calvert-Lewin.
Subs: Darlow, Byram, Longstaff, Tanaka, Harrison, Gnonto, Chambers, Piroe, Nmecha.
Man Utd: Lammens; Yoro, Heaven, Martinez; Dalot, Ugarte, Casemiro, Shaw; Dorgu, Cunha, Sesko.
Subs: Bayindir, Fredricson, Kukonki, Malacia, Mantato, J.Fletcher, T.Fletcher, Lacey, Zirkzee.
Attendance: 36,909
Soccerphile.com