Leeds United 1-1 Manchester United: Leeds and Manchester United traded goals around the hour mark after a flat first half with little help for either team at Elland Road.
Leeds United and Manchester United ended in a draw at Elland Road as the hosts failed to capitalize on their opponent’s slow start. Brenden Aaronson put Leeds ahead with an effort on the wrong side of Aiden Haven, but Matheus Cunha quickly equalized.
The home team had a chance to regain the lead. Senne Lamence made a fine save to deny Noah Okafor’s acrobatic shot and substitute Joel Pillow almost scored the winning goal shortly after coming on as a substitute. In between those chances, Cunha came close to clinching victory for the visitors, but his shot just went wide of the post.
United found the back of the net early in a quiet first half, but Cunha’s celebrations were cut short by an offside flag. Leeds were themselves victims of the flag in midweek against Liverpool, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin involved, smelling a goal soon after returning to the starting XI.
Neither team showed much quality before the break, and the early exchanges were summed up when Diogo Dalot swung an inviting ball over the crossbar. Leeds, on the other hand, had two penalty appeals dismissed at short notice, one for handball and one when James Justin went down under pressure from Lisandro Martinez.
But immediately after that, the hosts were almost 1-0 up. Calvert-Lewin rose highest to meet an inviting cross from the right and head home, which fell over Senne Ramens and hit the foot of the post.
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It wasn’t until the hour mark that the game really came to life. Aaronson took advantage of Haven’s uncertainty at the back and confidently beat Lamence, but United sub Joshua Zirkzee produced an immediate reaction from Cunha.
However, in the end, you will feel that although the points were not as many as either team would have liked, they more or less deserved them. Here are some mirror football stories from Elland Road.
1. Zirksee forces Amorim to reconsider
Given the size of United’s absentee list, Joshua Zirkzee’s failure to start was hardly a vote of confidence. If he doesn’t get it now, you’d imagine he’ll drop well down the pecking order once the likes of Mason Mount and Brian Mbeumo reenter the fray.
Whatever United wanted from the Dutchman, it didn’t come with nearly enough consistency, and his debut goal against Fulham felt like a long time ago. However, he still had something to offer in attack and made an immediate impact off the bench, assisting Cunha’s equalizer after Ruben Amorim, fed up with a one-goal deficit, immediately reacted by bringing in an extra attacker.
There were reports in Italy earlier this week suggesting that a loan move to Roma remains a possibility, perhaps followed by a summer swap deal for centre-back Evan Ndicka. But after this cameo, he may have been convinced that Amorim was worth giving another chance.
2. Calvert-Lewin’s claims about England
There is growing controversy over Leeds star Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s call-up to the England national team. He went into Sunday’s match with eight league goals this season, more than he had scored in the previous four seasons at Everton, at a rate of one goal every 142 minutes.
You have to go back to the 2020/21 season for the last time he reached double figures in the Premier League. It was his last call-up to the England squad, with his most recent cap coming in the Euro 2020 quarter-final victory over Ukraine, but his header that hit the post in the first half was yet another reminder that he is a player with both in-form and confidence.
Manager Thomas Tuchel has a decision to make as he prepares England for this summer’s World Cup. If Calvert-Lewin continues to perform like this going into the March international break, it wouldn’t be surprising to see his manager keeping a close eye on him.
3. Manchester United transfer test
Manager Ruben Amorim has remained tight-lipped when discussing Manchester United’s transfer plans, suggesting it could be a quiet month. However, the well-worn nature of the bench may remain a concern.
Six of United’s eight bench outfield players are academy youngsters, five of whom are teenagers, but Amorim opted not to use any of them on Sunday. Like many of these young players, 19-year-old Haven once again started at centre-back, sadly showing his lack of experience and allowing Leeds to break the deadlock.
Haven had a relatively subdued winter spell last year but quickly showed his worth despite an unwelcome moment at Elland Road. The second half of the current campaign may be more about Amorim improving the players he has, rather than finding quick fixes.
4. Leeds’ long wait continues
Before kick-off, we had to go back in time to more than 20 years ago when Leeds last beat Manchester United at Elland Road. They may have been out of the top flight for quite some time during that period, but they have still faced each other six times in league or cup competitions in 2021, winning five times and recording the only goalless draw.
This felt like their best chance to end the unwanted run, and when Aaronson scored the opening goal, they looked destined for victory. If they were able to avoid an immediate response, the visitor likely would have had no way back.
But instead they had to compromise to earn points. It’s still a valuable record for fellow struggling sides Nottingham Forest and West Ham, even after defeat at the weekend, but it could have been much more.
5. Sesco’s struggles are really concerning.
Benjamin Sesco was supported by Joshua Zirkzee in United’s last game against Wolves, with the latter scoring at Old Trafford. Zirkzee was dropped to the bench on Sunday and the focus on his fellow forwards did not help summer signing Sesco.
Despite being relatively young, the Slovenian star has a wealth of experience at the top level. However, in his first 15 Premier League games (including nine starts), he had scored just two goals before the kick-off at Elland Road.
Some fans have pointed to a lack of service, but that’s not the only problem. A wayward header from Casemiro’s cross in the 54th minute, even with an offside flag, showed the main player’s lack of accuracy, followed by an even worse mistake from Zirkzee’s cutback 17 minutes later.
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