A wrong turn
Leeds United’s players must be well aware by now the channel of turf used for warming up at stadiums is virtually always to the left of the dugouts. For some reason, at Cardiff City on Sunday, there was a penchant for turning right, towards the away end.
Rodrigo, Max Wober and Cody Drameh all had to be pursued down the touchline by Cameron Toshack to call them back. Even after their warning, Jack Harrison, Sonny Perkins and Mateo Joseph would head in the same, wrong direction just a few minutes later.
Drameh shows his camaraderie
Cody Drameh continues to be one of the most hotly-tipped Leeds players to move on this month. Despite Jesse Marasch’s warm comments, the proof has been in the pudding for the right-back.
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Sunday’s FA Cup clash at Cardiff was the first time the 21-year-old had been named in a Leeds squad since he started at Brentford last September. It’s clear he is not getting the game time he wants while Rasmus Kristensen and Luke Ayling are healthy.
It was ironic his long overdue return to competitive action came at the scene of so much Drameh success last season. Despite his limited pitch time, in training it’s clear how well Drameh has established himself in the group.
In the 73rd minute of Sunday’s match there was some welcome support for Sam Greenwood. After the midfielder had seen a shot go over from close range he was floored by a tackle from Sheyi Ojo.
Flat on his back and bemoaning his poor finish, Drameh went over to him, put him back on his feet, patted him on the back and had a word in his ear.
Wober’s Berardi moment
Gaetano Berardi scored so rarely for Leeds, fans would sing about entering the pitch if the cult hero somehow managed to find the back of the net. Ironically, the Swiss would score one of his two Leeds goals in the third round of the FA Cup in Wales.
Berardi’s strike was a minor footnote on a dark day for the club at Newport County. It was heading the same way a few miles down the M4 at Cardiff on Sunday until the late drama which salvaged a 2-2 draw.
Max Wober made his debut in the week he arrived from Red Bull Salzburg and he was soon the subject of the same song from the Leeds faithful. The 24-year-old had made a decent start in the Welsh capital and within a few minutes was having his name sung.
Wober pays it back
It was a very promising debut for Wober. The bar was very low for someone coming from Austria’s top flight with no competitive football in nearly two months and barely a week’s worth of training at Thorp Arch.
It seemed an especially tall order to expect him to excel when you considered the context of a match Leeds were struggling so badly in. Yet the 24-year-old showed composure, confidence and ease in this unit despite so little time with them.
So much so, he was ready to engage the fans within few minutes of ‘meeting’ them on the field. After the award of the Leeds penalty, Wober was over to the away support and pumping his arms like a Leeds veteran with white in his blood.
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