CHAOS THEORY
Leeds beating themselves while happy Hammers march on
THE form of goalkeeper Illan Meslier should be a concern for Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa. Not because he is playing poorly. The problem, rather, is how much opportunity he is getting to impress.
The brilliant young Frenchman has made a league-high 27 saves this season. He is also in the top three for high claims and punches. In short, he has a lot to do.
But here is the worry — only Norwich’s Tim Krul has conceded more goals than Meslier, and the Canaries look doomed already.
On Saturday against West Ham, the 21-year-old was again man of the match. Goalkeepers winning plaudits in a losing side is never a good sign.
Such praise could extend to several of his team-mates, especially Raphinha and Rodrigo, who were all energy and ideas in attack.
Leeds have plenty of star quality, then, on the pitch and in the dugout. Aligning those stars into something resembling an orderly team is where they are falling short.
In their last three league matches, Leeds have faced a staggering 67 shots on their goal, somehow conceding only six times. The reason for that would be Meslier.
It cannot continue if they are to emerge from the bottom three, in which they now find themselves, winless after six games for the first time in the top flight since 1935. Whereas last season you felt there was method behind the madness of Bielsa’s relentless approach, now there is just chaos.
Hammers boss David Moyes (right) said he was struggling to make sense of this match, in which his side recovered from Raphinha’s first-half strike to draw level through a Junior Firpo own goal and win it when Michail Antonio galloped clear and finished in the 90th minute.
But you can make sense of it — Leeds are beating themselves.
For the opposition, if you stay in the game and keep a striker such as Antonio in a central area, you will get chances to score and win.
Moyes admitted Antonio did not play particularly well — primarily because he was wasteful — but he was still the difference between these two teams. Leeds do not have an Antonio. Patrick Bamford is injured and out of form. It says much that, of their 85 shots this season, only 27 have found the target for a return of six goals. For all of their attacking intent, you are never convinced Leeds are going to score. Bielsa has plenty to ponder, at both ends of the park.
LEEDS UNITED (4-1-4-1): MESLIER 8; Shackleton 6 (Summerville 90min), Cresswell 6.5, Cooper 6, Firpo 5; Phillips 7; Raphinha 7.5 (Roberts 69, 6), Dallas 6, Klich 6.5, James 6 (Harrison 46. 6.5); Rodrigo 7. Scorer: Raphinha 19. Booked: Meslier, Raphinha, Roberts. Manager: Marcelo Bielsa 6. WEST HAM (4-2-3-1): Fabianski 6.5; Coufal 6, Zouma 6, Ogbonna 6, Cresswell 6.5; Rice 7.5, Soucek 6; Bowen 7 (Dawson 90), Fornals 6.5 (Vlasic 78), Benrahma 7.5; Antonio 7 (Yarmolenko 90). Scorers: Firpo 67 (og), Antonio 90. Booked: Fornals, Antonio. Manager: David Moyes 7. Referee: Kevin Friend 7. Attendance: 36,417.