KEOWN CONVERSATION TACTICS: Leeds emptied their tank and collapsed against Crystal Palace. It can’t happen again – the game should be a huge wake-up call with big matches ahead
- The way Javi Gracia’s squad collapsed at Elland Road last week was embarrassing
- Palace impressed with Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze pulling the strings
- Gracia has to hope it was a one-off day as their struggle for survival continues
Never has that cliché about a ‘game of two halves’ felt more appropriate than last Sunday’s Leeds v Crystal Palace.
The first half was so encouraging for Leeds. They were totally dominant, spurred on by their rampant supporters who pressed well and played with plenty of width.
The full-backs, Luke Ayling and Junior Firpo, flew around, and midfielders Weston McKennie and Marc Roca landed tackles like heavyweight boxers throwing punches.
Strikers Luis Sinisterra, Patrick Bamford and Jack Harrison fired shots at Palace’s goal.
But the second half was a capitulation, one of the worst in Premier League history.
Crystal Palace dominated Leeds in the second half of their Premier League game on Saturday
There was so much encouragement for an impressive first-half Leeds at Elland Road
However, the performance after the break was disastrous – there was no desire, urgency or composure
There was no desire, no urgency, and no calmness.
Leeds might as well have turned off the lights on Elland Road and gone home at half-time, so disastrous was their post-half performance.
It was as if they had covered so much distance in the first 45 minutes that their tank was empty in the second half and there was no energy left to play like that.
As Javi Gracia and the Leeds coaches must have done – painfully, I might add – I watched a full replay of the game to study how and why this collapse happened.
Leeds took the lead through Bamford through a well-worked goal – one from the training ground.
But then, from the 35th minute, Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze started to see more of the ball. They are special players for Palace and Leeds suddenly looked vulnerable and conceded silly set pieces.
It was from such a free kick that Palace equalized in stoppage time of the first half and knocked the wind out of Leeds’ sails. From there it got worse.
Leeds attacked Elland Road’s Kop but were suppressed when Olise and Eze took over.
Palace made it 2-1 with Olise getting plenty of space from Pascal Struijk, who made a half-hearted attempt to stop his cross which was headed in by a weakly marked Jordan Ayew.
It became 3-1 when Olise, again given space, this time by Firpo, fired a through ball into Eze.
The Leeds defenders at this stage were terrified of Olise and Eze with the damage they were doing.
It quickly became 4-1 as Olise from deep in his own half created an unchallenged four-on-two before feeding Odsonne Edouard.
Michael Olise (right) continued his fine form as he turned on the style in Yorkshire
Olise and Eberechi Eze (right) started to see more of the ball in the game after 35 minutes
Javi Gracia’s team has big problems getting out of the competition and they have two tough games ahead of them
Then it was 5-1, when Will Hughes’ shot fell to Ayew, who was offside as Rasmus Kristensen hadn’t bothered to push up with the rest of the defence. This was a total disgrace and the Palace players were giggling by the end, they had beaten Leeds so easily.
Gracia’s team now has two tough games against Liverpool and Fulham, followed by Leicester and Bournemouth, two teams also in the relegation race.
That Palace loss was a huge wake-up call for Leeds. They need to protect their back four and not be so obsessed with pressing, which might be a hangover from the Marcelo Bielsa era.
Leeds are now living in hopes that the disastrous collapse against Palace was a one-off as they aim to remain a Premier League club.