Preston North End 1 Leeds United 1 – Pile on the forwards!

Preston North End 1 Leeds United 1 – Pile on the forwards!   Leeds were below par in this match with passes going astray.  Compound that with persistent fouling and a referee who bottled it, the football was a side show.  It took a pile on of forwards for Leeds to save a point.

Despite Preston North End this season having a new manager and a weakened squad it was a tawdry affair like last December.  Leeds had an extra day’s rest over Preston North End and strength in depth to rotate. Leeds’ away record this season is their Achilles heel and this match was doomed to yet another 1-0 defeat.  Ultimately the pressure of a forward-heavy team paid off in extra time as Preston struggled to cope with who to mark.

It was a tough first half for Leeds as they struggled to hold on to possession.  Once Preston went a goal ahead, Preston defended deep and Leeds didn’t threaten enough as their final touch was poor. It had that feel of other matches this season where Leeds go a goal behind and the opposition dig in to the end.

Preston’s goal came from a counter attack in numbers that Leeds were caught off guard with their defending.  Struijk and Bogle lacked the pace to track their men with Rodon leaving the cross for Preston to score a clinical goal on the counter.

Preston did their best to waste time with the ball and foul Leeds players without the ball.  After a yellow card was awarded on a tackle on Aaronson.  Bogle was then hacked down by studs up but bizarrely no yellow card for the Preston player when even a red card would not have looked out of place – Whiteman should have been sent off.  Instead, Farke was yellow carded for pointing out the issue, and a Preston staff for arguing with Farke.

As the fouls went in, the needle between players was causing the referee to lose control of the game. Tanaka was hacked down and still the referee kept his cards in his pocket

In the second half Leeds regained control –  James kept crossing them but this was not Gnontos match on the other wing.  Piroe and Aaronson were off target. But Leeds were lucky not to be 2-0 down from a second rare Preston counter attack in second half.

Time was running out as every ball through the channel by Leeds was well read by Preston.  Substitute Bamford should have equalised with a back flick in front of goal that missed when a simple tap in would have done the job. The shots from outside the box started to pour in with James hitting the woodwork.

Then we had classic Farke tactic of pile on the forwards – Joseph, Piroe, Ramazani, Solomon, James and Bamford all up top – throwing the kitchen sink at the last ten minutes with Tanaka in midfield.  In extra time James was there again to cross in front of goal for substitute Joseph to clatter with the keeper to get that vital equaliser.  It was reminiscent of Gnonto’s goal against Middlesbrough earlier in the week. 

Man of the match: James who kept putting the ball in the box for the forwards and nearly scored himself.