It is quite a rare occurrence for newly promoted clubs to win their opener in the Premier League, but Leeds United did. They followed the lead of fellow promoted club Sunderland from this weekend.
Going into the game, all the talk was about Daniel Farke and him asking for quality in attack for this season. Before the match, we also found out that Illan Meslier had been dropped from the squad. Leeds did not need the attack on Monday night, they defended well and frustrated the Everton team.
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It took a late penalty scored by Lukas Nmecha to grab all three points. Toffees manager David Moyes had some praise for the Whites:
”Great credit to Leeds, they were immense. They defended really well and corner kicks really well.”
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Everton captain slams Leeds United penalty decision
Credit: Imago
A penalty was called in the 82nd minutes, when Everton captain James Tarkowski was deemed to have handled the ball in the box. It was called and checked by VAR before it was given. Substitute Lukas Nmecha was on hand to dispatch the penalty to give Leeds their first three points of the season.
After the game, Tarkowski was asked about the decision, and he had this to say:
“Not a penalty. As soon as the ref blew I thought it was going to overturned. My first question to him was, if my arm was down by my side, which it was, is it a penalty? He said no.
“I’ve since read that I leaned into the ball. There’s nothing unnatural about my arm being by my side.
“The ball is allowed to hit your arm, it just can’t be away from your body unnaturally, which it wasn’t. I can’t understand it really.
“I really can’t understand it and I’m disappointed.”
Leeds take precious three points
The fans will be pleased they recorded their first three points at Elland Road. Leeds made it a fortress last season, and kicking this year off with a win seems like the best result for everyone. Daniel Farke called on the fans to raise the atmosphere, and they duly delivered.
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