Leeds United saw off Accrington Stanley 3-1 at the Wham Stadium to claim their spot in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Here’s a look at the winners and losers from the contest.
Winners
Jack Harrison
Marsch took the opportunity to underline just how key Harrsion is to his plans during his pre-match press conference earlier in the week amid rumours of Leicester City’s interest in him. And, Harrison backed up those words with an eye catching performance in Lancashire.
The winger scored a peach of a first half goal to give the Whites the lead in the contest. Receiving the ball 25 yards from goal, Harrison let fly with a first time drilled effort that nestled nicely into the bottom corner of Toby Savin’s net.
Read more: Leeds United player ratings as Jack Harrison stars with a point to prove in Accrington win
He impressed with his creativity as Accrington tried to apply pressure on United’s dangermen, moving the ball well, making runs into space and getting the ball into the box at every opportunity. He was the man that set up Leeds’ third, too, squaring the ball to Luis Sinisterra in the box.
Luis Sinisterra
The Colombian made his first start since overcoming the foot injury that saw him miss two and a half months of action and he more than looked the part. His neat control regularly got the better of Accrington’s defenders and he never shied away from taking on possession and driving Leeds up the field.
He hit the post in the first half with a clipped effort from the edge of the area, but he found the back of the net in the second, arriving in the box at the perfect time to poke home Harrison’s cross. He was replaced shortly after scoring, but he’ll be in contention for a starting spot next week when Leeds go to Nottingham Forest.
Accrington Stanley
Leeds didn’t have it all their own way at the Wham Stadium and Accrington deserve plenty of credit for that. The League One side were game from the start, testing Illan Meslier with efforts from range and looking to get in Leeds’ faces.
They found joy and had they been more clinical they would have scored more than the one they nicked in the closing moments of the game through Leslie Adekoya. A bumper crowd made it a great atmosphere as they never stopped singing and John Coleman’s side ensured Leeds weren’t always as comfortable as the scoreline may suggest.
Losers
Brenden Aaronson
The American started the game on the bench before emerging to feature for the final 15 minutes or so. He got stuck in and tried to make an impact, despite Leeds already having the contest wrapped up when he entered the fray.
However, the argument for him to start at Forest over other players is getting harder and harder to make. As mentioned above, Harrison and Sinisterra impressed against Stanley and with Wilfried Gnonto and Rodrigo to come back in and Georginio Rutter edging himself into the action, Aaronson has plenty of competition for a spot in the starting XI next weekend.
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