Leeds United were looking to make up for a lost opportunity as we welcomed fellow promotion hopefuls West Bromwich Albion to Elland Road earlier this evening.
Having missed an opportunity to return to the top of the second tier table in the midweek trip to Queens Park Rangers, taking victory over fourth placed West Brom would give us a significant boost as we head towards the end of the 2018/19 campaign.
A boost was exactly what we got, and for more than one reason. A goal inside of the opening 16 seconds from Pablo Hernandez set the pace of the game and by the half hour mark, Patrick Bamford answered his critics as he made it 2-0. He quietened them further just after the hour mark by completing his brace, and Ezgjan Alioski put the cherry on top in stoppage-time making it 4-0.
Short of any other major hiccups, the automatic places are now a three horse race and we can’t be complacent, but, West Brom are out of the equation for me.
Back to the top of the table, for a period at least – take the confidence and look to the next one.
Speaking to the BBC following the fulltime whistle, manager Marcelo Bielsa said of the game.
“For me the most important thing was the effort, attitude and state of mind of the whole team during the whole game. When a win is based on such a consistent effort from the whole team, we have to say that this is the responsibility of the players. I’m happy because the team got what they seeded, and many times they don’t get what they seed.”