Leeds United 3-1 Burnley
Writing about these Premier League sides, I had two thoughts in my head.
One was how could Leeds move away from the danger area of the table in the absence of last season’s top scorer (Patrick Bamford), their midfield general (Kalvin Phillips) and club record signing (Rodrigo).
Certainly, they would need their defence to improve after Marcelo Bielsa’s men conceded 14 goals in their last three league games, scoring just three consolatory goals in that time.
The second was, how could Burnley still be in the drop zone after playing like they did, in bursts, at Old Trafford on Thursday night.
Yes, they were 3-0 down after 35 minutes of that game and ended up losing 3-1.
But there was still much to admire about their play and, had they taken their chances and not been undone by a couple of unfortunate deflections, it could have been a very different story.
Well, this encounter was not only full of Premier League highlights but it answered one of my questions.
Highlights of the game
With both captain Liam Cooper and Phillips out until March because of thigh injuries, and Bamford missing, Junior Firpo and Diego Llorente returned at the back for the hosts with Daniel James deemed fit enough to make the bench.
It was Leeds’ first outing for a fortnight since a home defeat to Arsenal and a day to four-get for the Yorkshire club.
For the visitors, manager Sean Dyche stuck with the same side that lost to Manchester United with Wayne Hennessey keeping his place in goal in the absence of Nick Pope.
New fans’ favourite Maxwel Cornet was named on the bench after being absent for most of December with a thigh problem.
In what was a landmark game for home midfielder Stuart Dallas – his 250th appearance for the club – Leeds started stronger and Dallas cut in from the left before hitting a curling low effort which Hennessey was equal to.
It again took the Welsh shot-stopper to prevent the deadlock from being broken as he pushed behind a flick from Firpo, while Tyler Roberts should have opened the scoring only to head wide from six yards.
In between that, veteran Aaron Lennon – who started his career as a youngster with Leeds – showed he is still a dangerous outlet on the counter.
There was no denying Leeds deserved the lead which they claimed six minutes before the break, Jack Harrison finding joy at the second attempt after Hennessey saved his initial effort.
In fact, Firpo arguably should have doubled that advantage soon afterward after being teed up by Roberts before former Leeds man Chris Wood almost made them pay with a shot narrowly over on the stroke of half-time.
The introduction of Cornet at the interval certainly gave them something to think about and, sure enough, his arrival paid dividends nine minutes after the restart.
Thirty yards from goal, he produced a sublime free-kick worthy of any occasion to draw Burnley level.
It was a superbly executed free-kick and, not for the first time, Leeds were let down by a minority of their supporters when right-back Matthew Lowton appeared to be hit by a bottle during the celebrations.
At this stage, the SBOTOP Premier League betting odds were evenly poised but then one of my questions was answered as Burnley, for all their promise, seemed to go back into their shell as an attacking force.
Perhaps this is why they are struggling so much?
Certainly, Leeds took advantage and Dallas fired them back in front 12 minutes from time with a fine finish on the edge of the box before sub James made sure in stoppage time with a header from a Mateusz Klich cross which Hennessey couldn’t keep out.
A welcome tonic for Leeds who are now eight points clear of the drop zone, a zone Burnley are firmly entrenched in with Cornet set to depart for the African Cup of Nations.
Burnley need a confidence boost and, while the Clarets are better than the league table suggests, they need to start showing it in their points tally.
Key statistics
Burnley have lost seven of their past nine away league games against Leeds and are winless in 11 Premier League away matches since a 2-0 victory at Fulham last May.
Their most recent top-flight victory at Elland Road was a 4-1 win in March 1974.
This was only the second time in nine seasons that Leeds have won their opening league match of the calendar year – the other success was against Rotherham in 2017.
Marcelo Bielsa has won eight of his 10 Premier League home games against English managers, with the two defeats coming against Graham Potter’s Brighton and then-Aston Villa boss Dean Smith.
The Clarets have lost each of their last four away league fixtures against sides from Yorkshire.
Dyche’s side are on a Premier League record run of 110 consecutive matches without a red card.
What’s next?
Attention now turns to the third round of the FA Cup for both sides.
Leeds travel to high-flying West Ham next Sunday (they will also meet in the league the following week), 24 hours after Burnley host Huddersfield.
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