If there was one moment that neatly summed up Monday’s curtain-raiser at Elland Road, it was the demolition job to which Ethan Ampadu subjected Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the first half.
Facing his own goal, Dewsbury-Hall had dropped in to collect the ball from his defence, but Ampadu tracked him all the way and did not hesitate in launching into a fierce challenge. Everton’s £24million ($32.4m) new signing was left in a crumpled heap, clutching his ankle and grimacing on the edge of his own area as Leeds United’s captain calmly walked away without a second glance.
The flashpoint showed how high Leeds were pressing, with United’s holding midfielder 20 yards from the Everton goal. It showed the physical, aggressive approach the hosts were taking in their return to the top flight. It also showed just how meek and outmatched Everton were, too; a team caught in the headlights of this West Yorkshire juggernaut.
Ampadu dumps Dewsbury-Hall to the turf (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Ampadu was the embodiment of what Leeds wanted to be in this first test.
After three months of waiting and talking about their survival prospects, this was an opportunity to burn away that nervous energy, on and off the field. Daniel Farke’s side knew their assignment and provided the supporters with the rocket fuel required to light up the final chapter of the Premier League’s opening weekend. Every tackle, turnover, pressure, victorious duel, dribble and away error was roared on in an evening which could only reassure the Leeds faithful.
There were, and remain, a lot of unknowns coming back into the Premier League for Leeds. Eight new signings are all well and good, but how will they cope? A century of Championship points was great, but can 2024-25’s bunch cut the mustard now?
Ampadu is one of the many Leeds players considered too good for the Championship but still carrying top-flight question marks. Proving the doubters wrong would have been one of his many motivations on Monday night, and it showed in his performance.
Ironically, for all of the clamour for new signings, which will continue until September 1, eight of Farke’s 10 outfield selections against Everton had a hand in last season’s title. Not only did Leeds outclass the visitors at Elland Road, but they did so, in the main, with last term’s core.
If it was a reassuring night for the supporters in the stands, it was a shot in the arm for those who had carried over from the Championship. The confidence Jayden Bogle, Joe Rodon, Pascal Struijk, Ao Tanaka, Ampadu, Daniel James, Wilfried Gnonto and Joel Piroe can take from this is priceless.
Yes, Everton were surprisingly limited and disjointed, but Leeds could only play what was in front of them and they dominated the visitors, particularly in the first half. None of this guarantees survival, but it gets the monkey off the team’s back at the first time of asking and a lot of internal nerves can now be put at ease.
Last season, the three promoted clubs had to wait until October 5 (Leicester City), November 2 (Southampton) and November 10 (Ipswich Town) for their first league wins. Like Sunderland, Leeds are already up and running this time around and feeling, tentatively, like they can belong in this company.
The core of last season’s group will now feel as if they belong at this level (George Wood/Getty Images)
This wasn’t a passive, deep-lying, defensive, long-ball, set-piece-focused victory, either. Leeds properly went toe to toe with an aggressive press and progressive passing display that again tells these players they can look to dominate some opponents.
Bogle, on a welcome return from injury, made an instant impact with his raids down the right flank and interventions in defence, keeping his former Sheffield United team-mate Iliman Ndiaye quiet. Rodon and Struijk picked up where they left off in the second tier, smothering Beto in the Everton front line.
Ampadu proved to be a standout disruptor all evening, a calming presence in the middle of the park. In the minutes after Tim Iroegbunam’s crunching foul on the captain, when his body briefly asked him to slow down, Leeds felt that diminished intensity.
Tanaka, again, impressed with his relentless running, ball recoveries and interceptions. He underlined why Farke gave him the nod over Sean Longstaff, who may hope he gets a chance in a sterner test like Arsenal away on Saturday.
James, Piroe and Gnonto were lively in their own way. Piroe had chances and spurned them, which, until Lukas Nmecha’s late penalty, looked like it may be one of the post-match themes to pull at. For all of their possession and territory, Leeds should have tested Jordan Pickford more. That aspect definitely needs improvement, but that should come with reinforcements and more matches together as a unit.
Anton Stach and Gabriel Gudmundsson, the two new outfield faces, were brilliant in their own right. Stach kicked on from his Milan masterclass in Dublin with more shots, more chances created and more distance covered than anyone else.
The Germany international looks like he has the full package required to be a key difference-maker in the engine room for Leeds. Gudmundsson showcased the ball-carrying ability that stood out with Lille, with more successful dribbles than everyone else on show.
Gudmundsson celebrates at the end (George Wood/Getty Images)
Their link-up down the left channel, with Gnonto ahead, was a hugely productive outlet for Farke’s side. There will be a new test for them and the others on Saturday at the home of a title challenger, and it will be intriguing to see how they fare.
Leeds may be stronger at the Emirates. Winger Noah Okafor’s transfer from Milan appears to be progressing. A full-back and No 10, with the potential for another striker, need to follow the Swiss into Thorp Arch.
If they can improve on what is already being shown by the Championship old guard, Leeds really can start to feel optimistic about the campaign ahead.
(Top photo: Jayden Bogle celebrates at the end; by George Wood/Getty Images)
Source link
