Crystal Palace 2-1 Leeds United: Bunched up
Afterwards, Marsch tried focusing on the positives, repeating his recently acquired rhetoric that this is a young team and he loves the players. In attack, I'm not sure that it was Bamford or Rodrigo's youth that was the problem.
It was tough on Brenden Aaronson and typical that he didn't even get the notch for his — yes, his — wondergoal — yes, wonder — at Selhurst Park. And it's typical that, as with Luis Sinisterra's big moment at Brentford, Leeds United didn't capitalise on the beauty to win. Two rare moments of first team class in a month when we've been relying on the Under-21s for our fun, and nothing to show for them except Monday morning recriminations and mutterings that, well, Steve Bruce is available now.
Aaronson deserved more from Sunday afternoon against Crystal Palace, but whether Leeds deserved more than a 2-1 defeat is secondary to the fact that they should have got more. Twenty minutes in, leading 1-0, Wilfried Zaha was off the ball and on the floor and United looked like they had the match, and the result, under control. It was all going according to Jesse Marsch's plan, too. The Palace defence was nervous under pressure, of which Leeds had plenty to put down, and United were getting chances from one of Marsch's trademark creative outlets, the opposition goalkeeper. Vicente Guaita nearly gave up an early goal when Marc Guéhi hammered a back pass right at him, then he soon succumbed to a sneak attack from Jackie Harrison, losing possession in his own box. As the glorious dawn of this side's 3-0 win over Chelsea has reversed path, the sun dipping apologetically back under the horizon, bits like this still glow like the Selhurst corona that was illuminating the hairs straying from Pascal Struijk's hairband. Leeds might not be the most creative team going forward, but they can be one of the most frightening.
That's only coming in short spells, though, and it's putting a premium on goals like the opener here. An early strike would have lifted the gloom against Aston Villa last week, changing the game, and any burst of Aaronson energy like this is bound to cheer any Leeds fan up. Pressing created a high turnover, Aaronson was played in from the right, and his little zig-zagging run, his head pecking like a chicken after feed, was worth his Medford Messi nickname. This dribble through half the Palace defence could have easily gone nowhere, but Aaronson's shot had quality too, beating the keeper but only swerving onto the post. No worries, except for Brenden's pride; Struijk, the centre-back playing left-back, was up in the box to swing a long leg and pop the ball in safe and sound.
If only Pat Bamford's mood had the confidence or sharpness of either Aaronson or Struijk, Leeds could have won in the end. Another little move was busted by Brenden between the lines, and suddenly Bamford, starting again after injury again, was through on goal. Bamford has a famous story about his loan spell at Palace, how Alan Pardew didn't know he was left-footed. There was no doubting it here. The ball was set sweetly for a right foot finish but by coming on his wrong side, the chance gave Bamford something to think about, the last thing a striker wants when they're chasing goals after a year away. He decided on a southpaw jab and rolled the ball into Guaita's midriff.
Given another couple of minutes it was 1-1. I don't know what Liam Cooper was trying when he rotated slowly like a broken music-box dancer and gave away a free-kick, or why Odsonne Édouard was allowed to head the subsequent cross in so easily. By the end of the second half, I had many more questions, on many different subjects. Palace manager Patrick Vieira used the interval to give his players a short primer on beating the Leeds press — when three white shirts bear down on you, pass backwards then chip over them — and the Eagles played the rest of the game secure from United's scampering assaults. He got Zaha to stand further off Rasmus Kristensen, so after being marked out of the first half by United's right-back, he got a little more by running at him with the ball — not too much, because Kristensen played well. Without chances to steal the ball, Leeds struggled to build attacks, and when they did go forward it was mindless. We know Marsch loves video analysis and the second half made this week's work an easy task. He'll be pausing the footage in every promising situation and asking whoever had the ball, why did you just kick it nowhere to nobody?