Here are your Leeds United morning headlines on Sunday, November 6.
Jermaine Defoe left stunned by Leeds United youngster after 4-3 comeback win
Former England forward Jermaine Defoe was left stunned by the performance of Leeds United youngster Wilfried Gnonto in their 4-3 comeback win over Bournemouth yesterday.
Gnonto came on at halftime and despite the Whites falling 3-1 down just three minutes into the second half, the 19-year-old was instrumental in the comeback, finding Crysencio Summerville with a perfectly-weighted pass after a strong run from his own half for the winner.
After signing for the Whites in the summer transfer window, Gnonto has impressed in the limited minutes he's been given under Jesse Marsch this season, and has also found goals for the Under-21s.
Speaking to Premier League Productions yesterday afternoon, Defoe highlighted Gnonto's strength and the ability to find Summerville with a great pass.
"How many times have we seen this from Leeds," said Defoe on their counter-attack winning goal. "The power here to run through the middle of the pitch, get your team up the pitch and then to create something at the end of it."
Leeds United's transfer anti-climax may just be about to spark their season and next transition
Change is fast in football
Thirteen days earlier, there had been a resignation in the Elland Road air. Jesse Marsch’s time may finally be up at Leeds United. A Rodrigo opener against newly-promoted Fulham would give way to a 3-1 onslaught which added the rotten cherry to the eight-match cake baked with no wins.
The system was not working, showing no signs of improvement nor any resilience to the most basic opposition attacks. Exciting performances under Marsch since February could be counted on two fingers and many walked away from LS11 on October 23 firmly expecting the corner-flag club statement.
Fast-forward less than two weeks and Rodrigo was again scoring the opener at Elland Road, Leeds were again capitulating to a 3-1 deficit against newly-promoted opposition they had to beat. Except, this time, Marsch’s Leeds, led by a band of fearless youths, would find a way to fight back and fight on under their American boss.
Wilfried Gnonto makes his case as Jesse Marsch left with Leeds United food for thought
It’s fair to say Willy Gnonto has given his Leeds United head coach Jesse Marsch some food for thought. Gnonto only made his Whites debut last week against Liverpool, but in the space of just seven days he has pushed himself into contention for a starting spot.
Unfortunately, Leeds only have one more Premier League game before the competition comes to a halt for the World Cup, but fans shouldn’t be surprised to see Gnonto making his first league start under Jesse Marsch at Tottenham Hotspur. Such a notion comes on the back of his performance against Bournemouth on Saturday as Marsch’s side won 4-3 at Elland Road to move up to 12th in the table.
It’s no exaggeration to say the Italy international’s introduction in the game helped to change the complexion of the fixture after replacing the out-of-sorts Jack Harrison at half-time. Straight away his direct running game gave Adam Smith something to think about and despite Leeds conceding early in the second half, he helped the Whites find some sort of a foothold in the game.
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