Match report and free highlights as Patrick Bamford returns following a lengthy absence to snatch a point for Leeds in the 95th minute; Tyler Roberts' first-half opener is cancelled out by Shandon Baptiste and Sergi Canos strikes
Monday 6 December 2021 06:08, UK
Leeds United saluted the return of their talisman as striker Patrick Bamford marked his first appearance since September with a 95th-minute equaliser in a thrilling 2-2 draw with Brentford at Elland Road.
Tyler Roberts, making his 100th appearance for Leeds, gave the hosts a 27th-minute lead with a poacher's finish, sliding on to Raphinha's cross from the left to stab the ball home.
Shandon Baptiste equalised for the Bees, his shot from the edge of the penalty area from Sergi Canos' deflected cross making it 1-1 in the 54th minute.
Canos then fired Thomas Frank's side into a 2-1 lead as the Londoners turned the game on its head in the 61st minute, but substitute Bamford's close-range finish in the final minute of stoppage time rescued a point for Marcelo Bielsa's men.
The result moves Leeds into 14th place on 16 points - six points above the relegation zone heading into a difficult run of fixtures - while Brentford stay in 11th position on 17 points.
"I felt rusty as hell to be honest," Bamford said afterwards. "But I always felt once I was out on the pitch I was going to get one touch.
"Sometimes, when you're out through injury you become a better player all of a sudden. There was a bit of pressure but to score is always nice especially as it rescued a point. We had a 10-minute spell in that second half when they got the goals and it was frustrating watching it on the sidelines. It was important that we got a result today given how tight the table is at the minute."
Raphinha's late penalty turned one point into three last time out against Crystal Palace, making life a little bit more comfortable for Bielsa's side. They finally had Bamford back for the visit of Brentford, who have refused to show signs of strain.
There was certainly relief at beating Everton last weekend but they were powerless to halt Tottenham on Thursday and arrived at Elland Road only a point above Leeds in the table. With two fewer days' recuperation and against a team that revel in a high-energy approach, Frank's side were going to need to dig deep into their reserves.
Ahead of the game, Frank spoke in glowing terms about his "big inspiration" Bielsa, a man he has admired from afar since his days as Denmark's U16s coach, and whose endorsement during an earlier meeting he still treasures.
But he was disappointed with his team's efforts in an opening period Leeds dominated. In the absence of Ivan Toney following his positive Covid test, the Bees lacked a focal point. Bryan Mbeumo's wild attempt from Ethan Pinnock's cross from the left was the closest they came to threatening Illan Meslier's goal as the hosts grew into the contest.
Bielsa was forced into an early change when captain Liam Cooper suffered a hamstring injury in attempting to block Mbeumo's shot but, having introduced Jack Harrison and made a tactical alteration, Leeds duly struck on 27 minutes.
Bielsa had asked Raphinha to alternate wings with Harrison and it was while the Brazilian was operating down the left flank that his penetrative cross at the second attempt was prodded home instinctively by Roberts.
With Bamford back on the bench, it was important Roberts took his opportunity in his third league start of the campaign and he nearly doubled his tally for the season in one afternoon when he collected Dan James' pass and forced Alvaro Fernandez into a fingertip save from distance.
Frank made no amendments at the interval but the visitors could easily have fallen further behind within five minutes of the restart as another inviting Raphinha delivery was headed goalwards by the returning Luke Ayling only for Fernandez to brilliantly claw his effort away.
Against the run of play, however, Brentford equalised as Pinnock was rewarded for chasing a lost cause before Canos' deflected cross from the left was drilled into the bottom corner by the unmarked Baptiste on the edge of the box.
The goal came moments after Kalvin Phillips went down with what looked like a muscular injury - later confirmed as a "knock to the back of his knee" by Bielsa - and with the England midfielder subsequently replaced, Brentford sensed an opportunity to turn the screw.
Canos really ought to have scored when he rose to meet Mads Roerslev's cross at the far post only to somehow head wide, but he atoned for his miss almost immediately as Brentford completed the turnaround.
Leeds gave the ball away cheaply before Baptiste released the ball for Mbeumo and the timing of his pass to Canos was to perfection as he, in turn, lifted his shot above Meslier and into the roof of the net.
There were ugly scenes after Canos scored as he went over to the corner and celebrated in front of the Leeds fans and a missile thrown appeared to hit the Brentford goalscorer.
Canos went down holding the back of his neck before returning to the centre-circle, but the incident will no doubt go into referee David Coote's report.
Bielsa immediately turned to Bamford with Leeds now chasing the game as Junior Firpo was removed, but there was little sign of Leeds reasserting themselves in Phillips' absence before Bamford latched onto Ayling's flick-on from Raphinha's corner to snatch a point with virtually the last kick of the game.
The first half was much like the high-octane Leeds United of last season, and with Bamford nearing a return to full fitness, the fans may still head into the festive period feeling like the side can return to more like their former selves.
Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa: "Given how we got the equaliser, it's a good point but if you look at the whole game it is an opportunity missed.
"When the game started, once we got organised we started to dominate it. But in the second half, we had issues we needed to resolve with the loss of Kalvin and we also had to accommodate his absence.
"In the first half, in the initial period, we didn't concede goals after Cooper went off but we didn't respond as well to the loss of Kalvin. We dominated the clear chances at goal... we dominated two-thirds of the game and we had double the number of chances.
"Kalvin went off because he had a knock to the back of his knee. Always the absence of these players are problems we have to solve but it's a situation that all teams go through.
"I hope we can save these situations that are clearly not desired. Patrick scored a goalscorer's goal and his presence is welcome. There's nothing better than him returning with a goal. We think about the next game which is Chelsea and we're going to prepare with maximum dedication."
Brentford boss Thomas Frank: "At this moment, I can tell you my feeling is that it's not a point to celebrate but what I will celebrate is the performance. We came up here without key players.
"I have no complaints as Leeds were missing players as well. With the lowest budget, and missing players in key positions, I think it was a top performance. We defended very well and gave nothing away apart from the goal in the first half.
"We stepped up and pressed a little higher to score two goals and I felt we were then in complete control. It's a tough one to then concede so late from a set-piece.
"Sergi [Canos] is now suspended for the game against Watford, but we will find solutions. I felt Sergi earned the trust I gave him and created chances, scoring a goal and creating chances.
"I can't praise the boys enough given how the players had to recover and I have to praise my medical staff for having the boys ready having played on Thursday night and produced our highest output of the season against Spurs.
"We had to go again three days later against a side who are at the top in terms of running. I make no complaints about the schedule but I just want to say we have fantastic staff and fantastic players.
"I found out about Ivan [Toney] yesterday and it is what it is. You get these things at the minute and we were prepared."
Sky Sports' Ben Grounds:
There appeared little likelihood of Leeds scrambling a point before Bamford stepped off the bench to score a stoppage-time equaliser. Bamford, making his first appearance in over two months as a second-half substitute after recovering from an ankle injury, marked his comeback by levelling in the fifth minute of added time.
It was described by Bielsa as "a goalscorer's goal" and Leeds have their scorer of goals back at an opportune moment. Their fixture list makes grim reading: trips to Chelsea and Manchester City are up next before they host Arsenal. Liverpool at Anfield on Boxing Day completes a daunting quartet.
It means Bamford had to hit the ground running after 11 games out. As any striker judged on his goals, he pictured the one chance that would fall his way and was rewarded for sensing where Ayling's flick-on would land.
The way Leeds went from being in a position of complete control to all of a sudden floundering during a 10-minute spell will concern Bielsa. But with Bamford marking his first appearance since mid-September off the bench with a priceless goal, he will believe they have every chance of derailing those with loftier ambitions over the coming weeks.
Roberts scored his first Premier League goal at Elland Road, in his 24th home appearance in the competition and from his 30th shot attempted in those games.
It was his first home goal for Leeds overall since July 2020 v Charlton, 501 days ago.
Leeds face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday December 11 (3pm), while Brentford host Watford on Friday Night Football at 8pm on Sky Sports Premier League; coverage starts at 7pm.
