Aston Villa 1 Leeds United 1 – Draw Specialists. Leeds were never destined to win today. Aston Villa are third in the Premier League table for a reason. An elite manager in Emery. Some highly rated players such as Konsa, Watkins and Sancho. They ended the match with two-thirds possession with players like Abrahams and Barkley coming off the bench to harass Leeds.
So to gain a point away at Villa is another step towards staying up. Leeds are turning into draw specialists – their tenth of the season. My son keeps reminding me we need to win – just drawing is not safe enough to keep us up. We are going to rely on winning at home under the lights to get us over the line.
Leeds soaked up the early pressure with defensive solidity and restricted Villa to vague shots at the goal. Once the game began to drift, Leeds had a spell where they turned up the pressure on Villa, winning second balls, overloading the wings with Justin, and looking for Calvert-Lewin to hold up the ball. It is Leeds at their most dangerous, and it is in these moments that they have to take their chances, as the game can swing away from them as it did today.
Whilst Villa had plenty of free kicks and corners, Darlow showed why he is keeping Perri out of the first-choice keeper, dominating his box and catching every ball that came. There was only one mistake in the first half when he wandered away from his line, but Buendia’s chip went high and wide.
First blood nearly came to Calvert-Lewin with a pinpoint lob from Bogle, but Calvert-Lewin’s first touch was too heavy, giving Martinez enough time to block it. But Leeds then had a free-kick taker as good as any in the Premier League in Stach. As the players from both teams lined up on the edge of the penalty area, Stach’s curling ball went to the top left-hand corner out of Martinez’s reach. A contender for goal of the season.
But Emery was not going to let things be. Bringing on Barkley changed the game – Villa started to pass quickly and in numbers. Leeds spent most of the second half defending their penalty box. It was painful to watch at times. This time, they were getting behind our defence and cutting back.
After a disallowed goal by Watkins Villa, they eventually scored. It was a fluke after yet another corner, Abrahams found the ball land at his feet and bobble over Calvert-Lewin’s head. But it was ultimately deserved – for Leeds to gain an away point at the Premier League’s third-placed team is a well-earned point.
Ampadu is Leeds’s talisman, making himself present all over the pitch. He should have been awarded a penalty in the first half when he was on the shoulder of the keeper, Martinez, who threw Ampadu to the ground as the corner came in. Gudmundsson was visibly off the pace today, with one back pass leading to a corner. He paid the price by not coming on in the second half, replaced by Bijol whose first contribution was to earn a yellow card.
Leeds have had a number of games now where they have to spend long periods pinned back without possession. Yet they still manage to wrest the momentum back and attack in swarms. They take their chances and win points from bigger teams. This may be an away game for Leeds, but the Leeds fans enjoyed it and were the loudest.
Man of the match: Stach’s free kick goal was unstoppable.
