It was another frustrating afternoon for Leeds United as they were beaten 4-2 by Manchester United despite mounting an initial second-half comeback.
The defensive frailties were laid bare for all to see in the first half as the Red Devils’ first goal from a corner in 140 attempts saw Harry Maguire open the scoring.
Bruno Fernandes headed in a second goal which, for most watching the game, felt like a real sucker punch.
However, Marcelo Bielsa’s side came out fighting after the half-time interval and scored twice, through Rodrigo and Raphinha, in extremely quick fashion to level the score.
They were eventually undone again as they went chasing victory as well-taken finishes from both Fred and Anthony Elanga wrapped up the three points for the visitors.
Leeds have picked up just one point from their last four matches and worries of a potential return to the Championship are starting to creep in at Elland Road.
Positive results for Burnley, Watford and Newcastle below the Whites this weekend have increased the pressure on Bielsa and the players whose gap to the relegation zone has been reduced to five points.
Speaking as part of Sky Sports’ Super Sunday panel, both Roy and Robbie Keane are beginning to feel slightly worried for Leeds in their fight for survival.
Robbie, who of course played at Elland Road for a year and a half, mentioned the extended absences of three key players as the main reason behind the poor form.
“You have to be [worried], they’re not getting results,” he said. “I still think they have enough but they have to stop conceding goals.
“They need to get [Liam] Cooper back, he’s the captain. I’m not sure when [Kalvin] Phillips is back, he’s a massive loss for them and, of course, Bamford. Last season he was brilliant.
“They have to be a little bit worried, they need to start getting points quickly.”
He colleague sat next to him on the panel of pundits, Roy Keane, also looked at the amount of goals being conceded by Leeds as the primary warning sign.
“Leeds need one or two players back [from injury], they are big losses because they haven’t got the biggest squad,” added the former Manchester United captain.
“Burnley over the last few months were struggling but they weren’t conceding that many goals, you think Watford might tighten up, the worry for Leeds is the goals and the chances they gave up, particularly against the better teams.
“They’re definitely in for a fight but I still think that, when they get one or two of their better players back, they should be okay but it’s going to be a huge fight now.”
With fixtures to come against Liverpool and Tottenham in the next six days, it is vital that Bielsa and Leeds are able to tighten up in defence, and fast.
It is very unlikely but, by the time the Whites travel to King Power Stadium to face Leicester on March 5, they could find themselves in the bottom three.
