Leeds United head coach Paul Heckingbottom watched on as his new club beat his former club Barnsley 2-1 at Elland Road.
Goals from Tom Pearce and Ezgjan Alioski earned Leeds their third win since Heckingbottom came in back in February, as Barnsley’s hopes of avoiding relegation took another blow.
Leeds made two changes from the side that lost at Aston Villa last week for the clash with Barnsley with Pontus Jansson and Samu Saiz coming back into the starting eleven.
Alioski had the first chance of the game but the Macedonian international could only fire wide.
Pearce opened the scoring on 17 minutes when the young defender pounced on a poor pass on the halfway line and he drove forward before firing a shot into the far corner of the net.
Alioski had another chance to score and increase the lead but this time he was denied by Adam Davies in the Barnsley goal.
Barnsley searched for an equaliser and Bailey Peacock-Farrell denied Brad Potts with a good save.
Peacock-Farrell could do little about the equaliser with ten minutes of the first half remaining. A cross in from the left from Ezekiel Fryers was sliced beyond the young Leeds keeper by defender Paudie O’Connor for an own goal.
Barnsley almost went in at half-time ahead but Peacock-Farrell made another good save, this time denying Connor Mahoney.
Leeds made the perfect start to the second half when they went ahead just five minutes after the break. Kemar Roofe did well down the Leeds left and he cut the ball back for Alioski, who scored from close-range.
Barnsley thought they had levelled soon afterwards when Ollie McBurnie had the ball in the net but it was ruled out for offside.
The visitors then should have levelled but Kieffer Moore somehow managed to miss from just a yard out with the goal at his mercy.
Leeds saw out the remainder of the game as they moved back into the top half of the table with the win.
Teams
Leeds United
Peacock-Farrell, Pennington, O’Connor, Jansson, Pearce, Phillips, Vieira, Saiz (Forshaw 84), Hernandez, Alioski (Ekuban 71), Roofe
Subs not used
Lonergan, Anita, Cooper, Sacko, Lasogga
Barnsley
Davies, Yiadom, Mills (Hedges 81), Lindsay, Fryers, Potts, Gardner, Hammill, Mahoney (Moore 62), Bradshaw (Moncur 73), McBurnie
Subs not used
Walton, McCarthy, Cavare, Pinnock