Leeds United travelled up to the Riverside Stadium earlier today for the Championship’s early kickoff against Middlesbrough.
With Leeds wobbling of late, Tony Pulis’ Boro do what Pulis sides do and they have maintained their own promotion hopes this year but it did look like it was going to be another of those days as despite dominating the ball and chances, our efforts on target were once again poor.
Whether Jack Clarke’s halftime issues and the resulting stretcher to hospital for precautionary reasons played any part in the hosts’ brighter start to the second half and a quick goal from them is open to debate, but the side kept plugging away and in the eleventh minute of stoppage-time, Kalvin Phillips opened his account for the season and had us back on level terms.
Leeds temporarily return to the top of the second tier table and speaking to the BBC following the game, manager Marcelo Bielsa clearly thought we had deserved more for our efforts.
“We could have won the game. We had 15 minutes in the first half where we were not at ease, but apart from that segment we dominated the game, we created chances, we deserved to score the goal and probably deserved to score other goals.”
As for Clarke, and an update on him, Bielsa also explained.
“What we know is that he didn’t feel well. We don’t really know the reasons yet. When he was taken to the dressing room, he was better. He was taken to the hospital to see if everything is all right.”