Scottish Daily Mail

MORE QUESTIONS FOR GERRARD AFTER LEEDS DRAW

- CRAIG HOPE at Elland Road

STEVEN GERRARD said he could not call himself ‘disappoint­ed’ with this first away point of the season. Almost the entire second half against ten men? He should have been. Fast approachin­g a year in charge, the jury on the Aston Villa manager remains split for now. His team were not bad, but neither were they good. Perhaps that’s what they are, a mid-table side. Given the owners’ investment, fans expect better, and so they should. Former Rangers boss Gerrard was prickly when asked afterwards if his team were progressin­g. ‘We were one goal away from you not asking that question,’ he cut back. ‘We’re close to that improvemen­t but there’s still tons of work to do.’ Villa didn’t score, and that is why questions are justifiabl­y asked. He can answer them by winning more than one away game since March. They should have won here after Leeds winger Luis Sinisterra was sent off in the 48th minute when blocking a quick free-kick at the expense of a second yellow card. It was brainless, but Villa weren’t too clever either. Gerrard said one or two of his players might not sleep as well as they should do. He didn’t name them, but we’re willing to take a not-so-wild guess — Philippe Coutinho and Ollie Watkins. In stoppageti­me, Gerrard booted a water bottle with a connection far cleaner than that of Watkins, who had just shot at keeper Illan Meslier when free inside the penalty area. Coutinho looks not so much a pale imitation, more an anaemic replica of the player who cost Barcelona £142million in 2018. Gerrard has called the Brazilian his ‘little magician’. He has performed a disappeari­ng act this season. No goals, no assists. The feeling remains that Gerrard (right) will be a very good manager. But will that be at Villa? His team needs to be far more ruthless if he is to lift the negativity that’s descended in recent weeks. Despite the jeers of home fans, referee Stuart Attwell handled an irritable game well. He showed six cards in total, including the Sinisterra red, and you couldn’t fault any of them. Once their anger had subsided, Leeds supporters rightly applauded those players who had fought their way to a point. The closest they came to losing was when a Coutinho volley rebounded off the post and Watkins followed up to stab wide on 50 minutes. It was ironic that one of the tactics they employed was, understand­ably, wasting time. Ironic in that they had been so irked by Villa’s bizarre attempts to do similar before the red card. Surely, a team with the supposed attacking talent of Coutinho, Watkins and John McGinn should show a little more faith in their ability to win a game? Leeds had a couple of promising moments but each time Sinisterra fizzed balls through the goalmouth, there were no takers. Patrick Bamford’s arrival gave Leeds a focus previously lacking and he came close to laying on a winner for fellow sub Mat Klich during stoppage time — only for McGinn to block inside the six-yard area. Had that gone in, the jury on Gerrard might just have been readying their verdict.

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