Leeds are simply the best says Woodgate
JONATHAN WOODGATE enjoyed many unforgettable t i mes at Elland Road during a celebrated playing career with Leeds, but his latest return is likely to linger in the memory for all the wrong reasons.
Middlesbrough escaped with a four-goal defeat which, had it been double the eventual tally, it would not have flattered the hosts, who returned to the top of the Championship in emphatic style courtesy of a fifth successive victory and an eighth match unbeaten.
Woodgate felt his side had lost to the champions- elect, and while West Brom , who can return to the summit with victory at Preston on Monday, will have something to say about such an assertion, it was hard not to concur with the beleaguered Middlesbrough manager, whose side sit a point above the relegation zone after one win in the last 12.
A grim winter struggle for survival awaits them, and it is to be hoped the personable Teessider is given an opportunity to turn things around. ‘For me, Leeds are the best side in the Championship,’ insisted the 39- year- old, who spent six seasons here during a halcyon spell for the club before a self-inflicted financial implosion at the beginning of the last decade from which they are yet to fully recover.
He added: ‘We drew here last season but they’ve improved their squad massively since then and of course they’ve got a great coach.
‘We kept going and the players gave me everything, but on the day we just weren’t good enough. Our squad is really thin and the only positive for us was that we had eight academy products out there today.’
Patrick Bamford’s diving far-post header after three minutes ensured a chastening afternoon for the visitors, who doggedly hung on until first- half stoppage time before Mateusz Klich added a deflected second from former Boro striker Bamford’s inviting cut-back.
Helder Costa thrashed home the third from the edge of the area with a little over 20 minutes remaining, before Klich took advantage of some tired closing-down to score his second with an even more impressive finish, a curling effort from 25 yards, before the hosts called off the hunt for a fifth goal against wilting opponents, who carried zero attacking threat and looked a rag-tag collection of bodies towards the end.
Marcelo Bielsa, the Leeds head coach, was magnanimous towards his inexperienced opposite number, who on this evidence will do well to avoid preventing Middlesbrough from exiting the division in the opposite direction to the one Leeds seem certain to finally leave it in May.
‘They were without eight players through injury, important players for them, and I really feel for Jonathan because he is a good guy,’ the Argentinian said after perhaps the most routine victory his side will achieve this season.
More stern tests lie ahead, and he added: ‘It’s important to go back top, but we’re aware of how long there is still to go and we can’t afford to relax at any stage.’