Leeds are going to Wembley after classic FA Cup Tie
Sunday, 5th Apr 2026 22:41 by Tim Whelan
Leeds certainly put us through the wringer in that 6th round FA Cup tie against West Ham United, and there are no words to describe how I feel after we finally won. Which isn’t great when I’ve got to write a match report!
The debate will continue about how seriously we should be taking this competition in the midst of a relegation battle, but the 9,000 Leeds fans in the away section of the London stadium were certainly well up for it. And Daniel Farke selected as strong a side as he realistically could have.
During the week there was talk of several players with ‘niggles’ as they reported back from international duty, and Gundumsson and James were absent from the matchday squad altogether, while Calvert-Lewin was on the bench due to a slight thigh strain. The Hammers rested more key players than we did, perhaps through having only 5 days before their next game compared to our 8.
There’s loads of action to describe, so please forgive me if I miss a few key moments in the interests of getting this done before midnight. For much of the first half our stronger team selection seemed to be making the difference as we dominated possession, starting with an early shot from Okafor that Areola did well to get down to save.
At the other end Perri was also called into action, first to keep out a clever flick from Castellanos, and then from a shot by Bowen after Traoré had carried the ball downfield a the Hammers broke dangerously. But these were isolated moments in a half that we pretty much dominated.
And on 26 minutes we deservedly took the lead, after Tanaka won the ball deep in our half before making a determined run off the ball, so he was there to get the ball back inside the penalty area. He turned and got a shot in, which looped up off a defender, and bounced in off the underside of the bar.
It’s a bit of a shame that some our fans would have missed it, as the goal came just as our section of the crowd had their back to the pitch in memory of Chris Loftus and Kevin Speight, who were murdered in Istanbul 26 years ago. We very nearly did give them a goal to witness soon after, as Okafor raced through with support on both sides.
I thought he should have played the ball left to Nmecha, and maybe it’s unfortunate he didn’t after what happened next. He passed to Stach instead, and the German was clattered after getting his shot away. That was well saved by Areola, and not only did VAR decline our appeals for a penalty, but Stach had to hobble off the field after trying to continue, to be replaced by Aaronson.
And Stach was later seen with a protective cover on his foot and using crutches, so we just have to hope it’s nothing serious, as we certainly need him for the run in. A second goal then might have put this tie to bed, and as the Hammers came back at us after the break I was reflecting on that chance, thinking that if we didn’t win the tie it would be one to regret.
West Ham were booed off by their own fans at the break, and Santo responded by sending on a couple of his more experienced players, in Souček and Pablo. This made the second half a far more even contest, while Farke was forced into another change as Rodon hobbled off, to be replaced by Bornauw.
The Hammers were getting closer to pulling themselves level, with Castellanos shooting narrowly wide and then heading against the post when he should have scored. And Ampadu was booked for a cynical challenge on Traore to stop a dangerous break, with a kick forceful enough for VAR to have a long hard look to see if the punishment should have been greater.
For once I would have forgiven Farke for delaying further subs, as only three windows are allowed and he had already had to use two of them for injuries, and I don’t believe in using your last sub with a lot of the game still to play. But his hand was forced on 69 minutes as Okafor started hobbling, so he had to make his other changes at the same time to freshen things up.
Nmecha and Tanaka were the other players taken off, while Clavert-Lewin, Gnonto and Gruev came on. Two like for like swaps, and one defensive change with an eye on keeping the lead we already had. These subs gave us a little more energy, but it still felt that our second goal on 75 minutes came a little against the run of play.
The officials needed a VAR check to spot that Kilman had fouled Aaronson as the American tried to make his way through, but could Calvert-Lewin score from the spot this time after his miss at Palace? Yes, he could this time, and for the next quarter hour West Ham looked completely deflated.
They were booing their own player (the useless Kilman) and hundreds of them started heading out of the stadium even though there was still a good amount of time to play. Gnonto was inches away from sealing the tie with a clever flick towards goal, and even Bornauw ran through to have a powerful shot, sadly too close to Areola. If Bornauw could score it would certainly have to be our day.
I was expecting a good amount of time to be added after a couple of injuries, VAR checks and substitutes, but not as much as 11 minutes. That has been hotly debated, though you could say it didn’t make that much difference when the Hammers got their goals in the first 6 of them. But what the announcement of that amount of time did do was completely change the atmosphere, as the remaining home fans realised they did have a chance after all.
And on 94 minutes a shot from Bowen came back off the post, with Fernandes reacting faster than any of our defenders to force the rebound home. And to minutes later Disasi swung a high boot to divert the ball into the net, the goal surviving a VAR check even though he also clipped Strujk’s head. I think that was because he got his foot up there first, before Strujk arrived behind him.
So all of a sudden we were forced into extra time, having thought the game was won only moments earlier. I was cursing the decision to dispense with replays, as at that point I would much rather have taken the tie back to Elland Road than face an extra half hour at their place, with the momentum now well and truly with the home side.
Our best moment of the extra period was right at the start of it, when a goalmouth scramble ending with Gnonto sending the ball over the bar on the turn. Apart from that we were looking a little deflated and tired, producing little but some poor free kicks and awful crosses when we did get forward.
At the other end West Ham had two goals disallowed for offside, just when it looked like they had completed a remarkable turnaround in this game. The first came after Perri raced out of his area but missed the ball completely spoiling a good performance from him so far. And as the hosts continued to press there were a couple of nervy moments when Perri and Bijol weren’t on the same wavelength.
Extra time meant we had one more sub available, and Farke used it to send Piroe on for Bogle, which must have meant a shift to something like 4-3-3. In the light of what happened, I won’t admit to thinking Piroe had come on for the penalties.
But the more dramatic change came from the opposite bench, with Areola injuring himself going for a hopeless cross from Aaronson, meaning that their rather cocky youth keeper Herrick had to come on. Five minutes injury time resulted, during which we gave the inexperienced stopper absolutely no saves to make. So penalties it was.
And we seemed to be on our way out as Piroe’s poor spot kick gave young Herrick the chance to make what could have been a fairytale save. But Bowen gave us an instant reprieve by placing his kick too close to Perri, and that I did not expect. The next five penalties were all scored, before Perri saved again, meaning that if Struijk was successful it would be enough to send us through.
I had no confidence in his previous technique, which was entirely dependent on a little shuffle sending the keeper the wrong way. But this time he hit if firmly, and it hit the inside of the post before going in. Fine margins indeed, but somehow we had won this incredible game, and Farke became only the fourth manager ever to take Leeds to an FA Cup semi-final.
The draw followed immediately afterwards, and the priority was to avoid Man City. Some wanted Southampton, but I don’t think I could stand the media favouring the plucky underdogs, and I’m still haunted by the last time we played them at Wembley. So I’ll settle for Chelsea, who aren’t having the greatest of seasons, so we’ve got a chance.
But can we please make it a bit less stressful next time?
Reuters
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