Report and highlights from Carabao Cup first-round clash
Tuesday 14 August 2018 22:18, UK
Patrick Bamford marked his full Leeds debut with a goal to ensure Marcelo Bielsa continued his perfect record as head coach with a 2-1 victory over Bolton in the Carabao Cup.
Striker Bamford, a £7m summer signing from Middlesbrough, needed just 27 minutes to open his account on his first start before Samuel Saiz added a second at Elland Road to take a much-changed United into round two.
Erhun Oztumer gave Bolton hope in the second half with a neat finish, but the hosts had enough to secure a third consecutive win in charge for former Argentina and Chile boss Bielsa.
The warning signs were there early on for Bolton, who were missing wantaway striker Adam Le Fondre, with Bamford firing wide on two occasions ahead of breaking the deadlock.
The 24-year-old latched onto a loose ball, nutmegged a defender and coolly sidefooted into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Leeds made it 2-0 just eight minutes later when the influential Saiz finished off a flowing breakaway, casually jinking past a defender and firing beyond Remi Matthews.
Bolton made a game of it after half-time, Otzumer curling home from 18 yards in the 52nd minute, and would have taken it to penalties had Jonathan Grounds not fired over from close range.
