Bielsa powerless to stop Leeds collapse
MARCELO BIELSA could not hide his frustration after a dramatic collapse saw 10-man Cardiff come back from the dead to end Leeds’ seven-match winning streak.
Bielsa’s side had to win to reclaim top spot and goals inside the opening eight minutes from Helder Costa and Patrick Bamford put them firmly on course.
Leeds, dripping with ideas, were utterly dominant, and when Bamford added a third for Leeds from the spot early in the second half, even Bielsa could have been forgiven for getting the cigars out.
Yet Cardiff — so insipid during the first half — warmed to their task as Leeds fell apart and were punished ruthlessly. First, Lee Tomlin profited from a Kiko Casilla mistake to pull one back on the hour, then Cardiff captain Sean Morrison headed in Joe Bennett’s cross in the 82nd minute.
Two minutes later, Morrison was shown a straight red card for a reckless lunge on Leeds substitute Eddie Nketiah.
Still there was more late drama as substitute Robert Glatzel fired home to leave a sell- out Elland Road crowd stunned.
In added time, Cardiff goalkeeper Neil Etheridge kept out Nketiah’s header before Ben White fluffed the rebound.
Leeds still have a 10-point cushion to third-placed Preston and head coach Bielsa, who denied that three late substitutions had backfired, said: ‘We can’t explain this result because we scored three times and missed 10 chances. We were calm and in control of the game. We knew something was going to happen, but we couldn’t stop it — yet we played some of the best football we have done so far.’
In the sixth minute, a stunning counter-attack led to Costa collecting Pablo Hernandez’s delightful first-time pass and firing home an assured left-footed finish.
Two minutes l ater, Bamford chested down Stuart Dallas’s cross and smashed a fierce, left-foot shot past Etheridge.
Leeds owner Andrea Radrizzani roared his approval as Cardiff, who had lost defender Aden Flint to injury before half-time, struggled to keep their hosts at bay.
In the 52nd minute, a third Leeds goal arrived when Etheridge felled Bamford and the striker made no mistake with his penalty.
Cardiff gained some respite on the hour when a rare attacking sortie saw Tomlin profit from Casilla’s error as the Spanish goalkeeper missed a cross.
And, Leeds being Leeds, more mistakes began to creep in.
This time last year, seven straight wins took Bielsa’s side to the top of the table at Christmas. They went on to blow automatic promotion, then suffered a fifth successive failure in the play-offs. Doubts about Leeds will resurface after Morrison headed home Bennett’s left-wing cross before Gl a t z e l s n e a k e d h o me a n 88th-minute equaliser. Cardiff boss Neil Harris, who grew accustomed to causing Leeds problems during his time at Millwall, said he would appeal Morrison’s red card. He reflected: ‘Leeds are as one of the best sides I have seen in the Championship in years. They were better than us, but we gave them a leg-up, we gave poor goals away and their penalty was debatable.
‘The boys have shown great character to come from behind. I can’t do anything but praise my players for their desire and ability to come back. It was first-class.’