Leeds United vs. Ipswich Town: Three Talking Points from the 3–2 Win
Leeds pass the most difficult test they have faced so far at Elland Road to remain top of the table.
After the defeat last week, the importance of a win yesterday was very high. We all knew Ipswich wouldn’t come to Elland Road and roll over. Their never die attitude gave Leeds a challenge they had not faced so far this season at home.
However, the lads were able to dig in and come away with the invaluable three points. The game highlighted a few things to think about as we look forward to Tuesday’s top of the table clash against Cardiff City.
Here are the three main talking points from the game:
Did we miss Jansson?
The defensive performance yesterday was a strange one. We struggled to deal with set plays during the game and Ipswich’s first goal was ultimately the outcome of the team’s inability to deal the dead ball situations. The obvious reaction to the somewhat poor defending is to refer to the need for the inclusion of Jansson.
Jansson is the best player in the squad, in my opinion, and if he is fit he is the first name on the team sheet. For us to say we missed Jansson implies that he would have replaced either of the two starting centre halves. Even though we did struggle to deal with the set pieces, the centre back partnership of Cooper and Shaughnessy were actually the standout performers in the game.
We can refer to stages in the game where we felt Jansson would have made the difference, but we also need to remember that without Cooper and Shaughnessy being as effective as they were, we may not have won the game anyway.
Hernandez holding his own
Pablo Hernandez had a great game yesterday. In the first half especially, he was the player who was at the centre of the creative positivity we saw from the team.
The Thomas Christiansen philosophy really suits the Spanish principles that are the base for Hernandez’s style of play. The build up and movement in the team creates the space and time for Hernandez to be really effective. The opposition become so concerned about the teams creativity. The stand off Hernandez which plays into his hands, we saw this numerous times in the game; the lovely nutmeg midway through the first half is testament to that point.
The attacking support and burst of energy we have in the final third has added something we have lacked in the past, but the slick approach of Hernandez balances the energy and creativity perfectly.
Getting the job done
The most important part of the result yesterday was the three points. The two teams directly below us also won and after the previous poor performance at Millwall we needed the win.
Ipswich were the best side we have played so far this season at home and will likely be in contention all season. In seasons gone by, we would have dropped points yesterday but we could see, even at 3–2 with Ipswich piling on the pressure, a different mentality.
The desire and expectation of victory flowing throughout the team meant I still knew we would win the game. As the final whistle went and I watched the team embrace each other, you could see that this is truly a winning team. Long may it continue.
We carry on riding the wave as we are still top of the table. We saw two of the Championship teams give everything yesterday and, even though the performance was not as visually appealing at times, the result certainly was. Now we move on to Tuesday night and another difficult challenge in this wonderful season.
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