After last weekend’s disappointment, Leeds United returned to winning ways with a relatively routine victory away to Cardiff City on Saturday afternoon, with goals from Largie Ramazani and substitute Joel Piroe proving the difference on the day.
Having slipped to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of newly-relegated Burnley last time out, the Yorkshire side were handed a welcome boost in the early stages this time around, with Joel Bagan seeing red for a foul on Wilfried Gnonto after just 23 minutes.
The visitors swiftly made that advantage count as new man Ramazani curled home in fine fashion, although it wasn’t until the 87th minute that the points were finally secured, with ex-Swansea City star Piroe expertly converting from the angle, following Pascal Struijk’s earlier spot-kick attempt which had been denied.
All in all, it’s a case of take the win and move on for the Whites after having not quite been at their free-flowing best, although manager Daniel Farke will still have plenty to ponder amid what was a mixed bag of a performance from his side.
Leeds’ star performers vs Cardiff
A word must, of course, be said for the aforementioned Ramazani, with the diminutive winger – who arrived on a £9m deal from Almeria over the summer – making the most of his first start for the club with that well-taken, first-half strike.
On the opposite flank, it was young Gnonto who proved to be ‘Leeds’ most creative and influential player going forward’ – as per the Yorkshire Evening Post’s Graham Smyth – with the 20-year-old Italian also completing three successful dribbles and registering one key pass as he looked to make things happen for his side, as per Sofascore.
With the likes of Georginio Rutter and Crysencio Summerville no longer in the equation, Farke will be looking to this wing pairing to provide Leeds’ creative spark, alongside the returning figure of Brenden Aaronson.
One place where creativity remains hard to come by, however, is in the midfield ranks, with the solid, but unspectacular pairing of Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev hardly setting things alight from their double pivot.
Having struggled to break down the Bluebirds at times, the question remains as to whether that duo represents the most fruitful solution moving forward.
Ilia Gruev’s game in numbers vs Cardiff
It would be harsh to suggest that Gruev, in particular, did anything hugely wrong up against the ten men of Erol Bulut’s side, having notably enjoyed a stunning pass success rate of 96% from his 89-minute outing.
With former Chelsea man Ampadu – who won eight duels in total – tasked with breaking up the play, the onus was on Gruev to try and dictate the tempo, yet far too often did the Bulgarian opt for the safe approach.
That can be evidenced by the fact that despite having 100 touches, the 24-year-old didn’t provide a single key pass, having also completed just one of his three long balls attempts.
A key pass is a pass that directly leads to a shot at the opponent’s goal.
As per Smyth – who awarded Gruev a 6/10 match rating – the left-footer ‘couldn’t provide anything really incisive‘, having at one stage even drawn groans from the away end for his desire to go backwards, rather than look ahead.
While Farke will be happy for his side to control games, there will also be a need to provide quality service to the front four – something which neither Gruev, nor Ampadu, appear best suited to do.
Gruev’s game in numbers vs Cardiff |
|---|
89 minutes |
100 touches |
96% pass accuracy |
0 key passes |
0/2 crosses |
1/3 long balls |
0/0 dribbles completed |
1/4 ground duels |
1/1 aerial duels |
2x dribbled past |
With Gruev also somewhat suspect defensively on occasion – having been dribbled past twice while also winning just one of his four ground duels – it could be the former Werder Bremen man who is sacrificed, rather than his skipper.
It would, of course, be a bold move to change a winning team, but with the likes of Ao Tanaka and Joe Rothwell waiting in the wings, the former Norwich City boss may need to be ruthless.
