Leeds United’s stalemate against Newcastle United last time out was a game very few will want to remember, but there was one incident at the start of the second half that was an intriguing development.
There’s been something of a shift in the past few years in the Premier League that Leeds have tried to tap into quite heavily with their summer recruitment, leaning into the growing physicality focus.
A clash against Newcastle United gave Leeds a good opportunity to test themselves against one of the most physically imposing sides in the division, and they matched them well.
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Newcastle United’s kick-off ploy called into question by The Athletic journalist
It was a tight game with very few chances between the two sides, amounting to just 1.15xG and only one ‘big chance’, that chance being Dan James on the stretch in the first half from Gabriel Gudmundsson’s cross, unable to tap in as Jayden Bogle arrived too.
The Magpies were sucked into a scrappy midfield affair against former favourite Sean Longstaff, who rightly left the field to an ovation from the away end, as well as the home fans.
However, one moment raised eyebrows at the start of the second half, as the Magpies kicked off towards the South Stand, and instead of keeping possession, Sandro Tonali restarted the game by launching the ball out for a throw-in near United’s corner:
Photo via NUFC’s full-match replay
It forced Leeds into a throw deep inside their own half as the Italian midfielder squeezed his side up the field to put the pressure on Leeds to play out.
What followed was Gudmundsson’s throw going further than Lukas Nmecha, allowing Sven Botman to mop up and play back to Nick Pope, giving Newcastle possession back and control of the ball to start the half, which they ironically would have had if they just kicked off normally.
The Athletic’s Michael Cox analysed this growing trend in the Premier League to relinquish possession from kick-off with a long punt into the corner, sharing that data suggests it’s a viable tactic:
“The data largely supports this idea. For throw-ins from anywhere in midfield – between the edges of the two penalty boxes – the ball is touched first by a team-mate of the thrower 85 per cent of the time. But this drops to 68 per cent when throws are taken within 18 yards of a team’s own goal line – and presumably many of those first touches are simply flick-ons, or a player hoofing it up towards halfway.”
Cox likened the tactic to rugby union, while suggesting a rule tweak might be worth considering to deny teams a simple route to regaining possession high in the opposition half, as he continued:
“An overreaction? Maybe, but football’s laws have always evolved to ensure that technical, possession-based play is able to compete with teams based around physicality and territory. This is partly why it has become such an attractive, popular sport to watch.
“But if deliberately kicking the ball off the pitch becomes a regular attacking tactic, the game will have become dangerously close to rugby union, and some kind of reform will be required.”
Sad to see 'kicking for touch' at kick-offs having a wave of popularity. Let's get this rugby nonsense out of the beautiful game.https://t.co/MHfJsSHEoM
— Michael Cox (@Zonal_Marking) September 4, 2025
A potentially effective ploy from Newcastle, but it did nothing against Leeds United
You can see the merits of this tactic, given that you’re putting a side under pressure right in the corner, where many teams end up just hoofing the ball away and giving up possession.
On the chance that a defensive clearance goes wrong, you’ve got a clear chance at goal, all from a simple kick-off routine, so it makes sense why Eddie Howe’s side played the odds like that.
It didn’t work against Leeds, though, as Botman’s recovery of the ball ended up with a pass all the way back to Pope near his own goal, which is actually a regression from their kick-off in the first place.
It’d be interesting to see Leeds do the same, given how our pressing has led to many a goal under Daniel Farke.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!