This was a retort from Manchester City to those calling them the “Erling Haaland Team”. Without their talismanic striker for the first time in the Premier League this season, they found a different way to win and keep the pressure on leaders Arsenal.
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Even captain Bernardo Silva joked recently he heard City being called Haaland FC, such is the impact of the Norway striker. In a match that tested Pep Guardiola’s team to the limit, City did not play with a traditional striker but claimed an exhausting victory through Antoine Semenyo’s winner.
At the final whistle, Rodri was on the floor, drained after 96 relentless minutes. Guardiola wandered on to the pitch and blew kisses to the Leeds fans after getting a mouthful during the match. What did they say? “W—–r, w—–r,” revealed the City manager.
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Pep Guardiola blows kisses to Leeds fans giving him grief – Jason Cairnduff/Action Images via Reuters
At this point, Daniel Farke was confronting the officials and earning a red card, furious at the amount of time referee Peter Bankes had added. Edmund Riemer, Leeds’ assistant manager, said later: “There were incidents, there was time-wasting. You are emotional and then he ran on the pitch and he got a red card. Perhaps it was too aggressive. He rarely gets sent off. He is never aggressive and rarely gets sent off, so I think it is harsh.”
It was a riotous end to an incident-packed match. And proof City can win without Haaland.
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It was Guardiola who coined the phrase the “Harry Kane Team” when describing Tottenham, which he eventually apologised for. But the same can be said for Haaland, who had featured in every league game this season before a knock in training days before the trip to Elland Road ruled him out.
Of course there are the goals, with Haaland still comfortably top scorer this season. But recently he has shown Kane-like qualities for dropping deep and getting involved in midfield. Only Bruno Fernandes has more assists this season.
But this was City without Haaland. Unquestionably weaker without the most prolific striker in English football, but different in set-up and still asking questions. Guardiola has developed a 4-2-2-2 system with Rayan Cherki and Semenyo the most advanced players and split quite far apart. Eventually, they found a way through the Leeds back line and it was Semenyo who tapped in from close range.
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When Semenyo arrived at City in January, Haaland suggested on camera that his new team-mate may not pass to him as he wants the Golden Boot. That is 14 now for Semenyo, which is still well behind Haaland but illustrates what a shrewd signing he has been.
Victory will breathe confidence into City’s squad as they chase down leaders Arsenal. They celebrated wildly at the final whistle and, with Arsenal’s lead back to two points, the pressure on Mikel Arteta’s players to deliver. City have gone through February with a 100 per cent winning record and it was the month in which momentum changed in the title race.
Around this time last season they were without Haaland for two crucial games, and were defeated by Real Madrid in the Champions League and Liverpool in the Premier League. Coming through this test in West Yorkshire was a big step for them. Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United have dropped points here and Farke’s team were always in the game.
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This was a bruising, chaotic game but before kick-off there was a moment of calm in the technical area as Guardiola and Farke embraced. The pair have struck up an unlikely friendship, improbable as Guardiola rarely gets close to those he considers a rival. But after Farke beat him while at Norwich City, the pair have kept in touch.
It was easy to see why Guardiola has such respect for Farke’s football when looking at the first half-hour of this contest. Leeds were aggressive, in the faces of City and intent on attacking. They were all over City’s back line and caused Marc Guéhi and Rodri – usually unflappable – to panic.
Leeds, however, have been guilty recently of starting games at breakneck speed and fading. So it was a case of City staying patient and implementing their rope-a-dope tactics when there was tiredness in the legs of their opponents. As the interval approached, Leeds were punched out and City seized their chance.
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Rodri had started the move by switching play from right to left, before Rayan Aït-Nouri and Cherki exchanged passes to get City behind the Leeds defence. Aït-Nouri pulled the ball back for Semenyo, who tapped in from a few yards out. He celebrated by playing air guitar in front of his team-mates.
Aït-Nouri and Cherki were among the Muslim players who could break their fast in the 13th minute when play was paused for those observing Ramadan. The stoppage was announced on the big screen with fans jeering while players walked to the technical area for the break in play.
08:11pm
Pep Guardiola speaks to Sky Sports
Like every game here at Elland Road, they are so aggressive. We make a thousand million passes and it still works in football. We controlled the transitions, did everything in the right moment. Huge victory. I know how tough they are.
You buy a player and the intention is good as always but you never know. [Semenyo] like Marc, the impact is very good.
One game at a time. Recover now. We start the real season. Many, many games. People are tired. Every game is really, really tough. Yesterday Wolves won. The Premier League is more competitive than ever. Every game is a real battle. It’s important that we make an incredible step and qualify for the Champions League next season because it’s really important for the club. It’s not done but there’s a big gap [to the teams beneath].
One game at a time. I don’t know [if they can continue this run]. When we went 13/14 games winning when challenging with Liverpool we didn’t know [we would at the time]. Every three days a game. Thanks so much for our FA Cup game at 8pmnot 3pm [sarcasm alert] giving us less time to prepare for Real Madrid. That’s how we have to live. Thanks so much [Sky doesn’t have FA Cup rights]. But we are going to deal with that.
07:54pm
Daniel Farke cannot speak to the media
It’s the first sanction of the red card. Then come the fine and a touchline ban, if upheld.
07:45pm
Antoine Semenyo speaks to Sky Sports
It means everything [closing the gap]. We want to win all our games on our side whatever Arsenal do. We will wait and see. But we have to control what we can control. I’m happy.
They are very tough [to play against]. A transitional team, they’re up and down [the pitch], and made it tough. What you saw [at the end when some City players were lying on the pitch] was how much effort we had put in. It was a great win.
The boys make it so easy for me to adapt. They try to play to my strengths. So is the coach, he helps me to be confident, calm in some moments and pop up to score some goals. Playing with world-class players is making me better and keeps me on my toes.
07:32pm
The top and bottom of the table
07:28pm Video
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Full time: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Daniel Farke is sent off by the referee for confronting the referee after the game. I have seen scores of his games as Leeds manager and have never seen him lose his rag before. Guardiola comes over and gives him a hug. The two are friends.
Guardiola also tries to calm Bogle down as he seems to have beef with Dias.
City close the gap to Arsenal to two points.
07:25pm
90+5 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Gudmundsson tries to buy the same kind of free-kick that Rodri just earned but the ref waves play on. Stach gets back to stop Savinho’s solo counter-attack.
07:23pm
90+4 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Rodri goes down like a bag of hammers when shielding the ball from Gudmundsson in the City penalty area. The slightest brush. Just before that James left-foot cross from the right was headed away by Guehi. Necessarily.
07:21pm
90+2 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Ait-Nouri is booked for time-wasting and seconds later so is Savinho for a ‘tactical’ trip on Gudmundsson.
07:21pm
90+1 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Gnonto retrieves it and sens James down the right but the Wales forward balloons his cross behind. The box was packed. Guardiola is livid about something, City’s shape I think.
07:20pm
90 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Leeds throw by the right corner flag after Ait-Nouro blocked Nmecha’s cross. Over to Ampadu again. City win the first header and send the ball upfield.
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Six minutes of stoppage time are signalled.
07:18pm
88 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Bijol heads wide from the corner when sandwiched between Dias and Rodri. Couldn’t get free enough to direct it.
07:17pm
86 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Rodri clears the corner. Back come Leeds with Nmecha’s long limbs winning the ball and keeping hold of it. Ampadu has two shots blocked, Leeds want a penalty for a Nunes hand ball and Calvert-Lewin falls when trying an overhead kick. Leeds settle for a corner.
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Ake → Cherki
Piroe → Justin
Bijol → Rodon
07:14pm
83 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Excellent from Guehi to hold off James when chasing an Ampadu long pass up the right. Leeds switch it when picking off Guehi’s pass and earn a corner on the left that Dias disputes when Nmecha and he fought for Gnonto’s cross.
Donnarumma is booked for shoving Gnonto before the corner comes in.
07:10pm
81 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Donnarumma copes with the long throw, using his height and nous to punch it away from the near post.
07:10pm
80 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Leeds throw on the right but City defend it well. Leeds keep coming down the left with good work from Gnonto, Ampadu and Gudmundsson to give Ampadu a chance of another long throw.
07:08pm
78 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Gnonto fouls Reijnders having given the ball away with a rusty-looking pass. He has hardly played in recent months. Leeds have gone to 4-4-2 since the changes. Justin, now at right-back. is penalised after an accidental collision with Geuhi. “You don’t know what you’re doing,” sing the crowd as Justin shows off the hole in his sock and blood on his shin.
07:05pm
76 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Gnonto → Gruev
James → Bogle.
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Leeds have a thrown-in after Donnarumma put the ball out. Amapdu hurls the throw into the box but Leeds are penalised after the first header for a foul on Semenyo.
07:03pm
75 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Cherki is fouled by Gruev. Leeds are looking to send Gnonto and James on. Calvert-Lewin heads the cross from the free-kick away and Darlow picks off Bernardo’s overhit pass.
07:02pm
73 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Superb save by Darlow, clawing away Guehi’s header from the top right corner after the England centre-half had met Struijk’s headed clearance with his brow.
07:01pm
71 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Cherki slips a pass with his right to the right of the D for Semenyo whose shot, bound for the top left corner was blocked by Struijk and turned behind for a corner. Leeds look cooked.
06:59pm
69 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Leeds have played fairly well but they are starting to look as if they’ve been run ragged. Farke is notorious for delaying his introduction of substitutes but they could do with some reinforcements, with energy and vigour, in midfield.
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Reijnders → O’Reilly.
06:57pm
67 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
O’Reilly is limping but continuing for now. Savinho is ready to come on having been out for six weeks. Cherki slides a pass down the right for Nunes who pulls back a cross to the 18-yard line. Ait-Nouri steps in off the wing and bends a right-foot shot into the Norman Hunter stand.
Savinho → Marmoush.
06:55pm
65 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Leeds make the first change as O’Reilly is given treatment for a sprained ankle.
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Nmecha → Aaronson.
Guardiola encourages his players – Jaimi Joy/REUTERS
06:52pm
63 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
A series of errors, Ampadu missing a tackle, Justin being blindsided by Marmoush, ends with Marmoush clipping a shot into the side-netting as he nipped in at the back post.
06:50pm
61 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Lukas Nmecha is stripped and ready to come on for Leeds. He scored against his former side at the Etihad in November.
06:49pm
59 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Cherki picks Gruev’s pocket, picking off his pass and triggering a counter-attack with a pass up to Semenyo. Rodon sprints over and wins the ball with a slide but appears to have hurt his hamstring in the process. he’s going to continue for now, though.
06:47pm
57 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Cherki stands on Gruev’s shin when he was on the ground after the Leeds player was awarded a free-kick. The referee interprets it as an accident and leaves it at that.
06:45pm
55 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Rodri is at the hub, controlling the rhythm, making Leeds run around with his short passes and picking out the clever movement of the players ahead of him.
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Semenyo’s shot hits the back of the net – Danny Lawson/PA
06:43pm
53 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Cherki and Bernardo combine to drag the defence over to the left then the City captain bends a pass down the right into Nunes’ stride. He crosses low and hard and Marmoush cannot work the angle from the near post, his shot rattling into the advertising screens.
06:40pm
51 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Two balls on the pitch but Dias boots one out and the ref waves play on as Leeds try to hound Guehi.
06:40pm
49 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Cherki slips and Leeds break down the right. Stach whips over a cross to Calvert-Lewin whose chest-trap takes him wider than he would want but the ball sits up for a left-foot volley. Nunes slides in to make a brave and brilliant block that sends the ball behind for a corner that City defend stoutly.
06:38pm
48 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Rodri trips Gudmundsson after the left-back kept hold of possession as he ran up the whitewash. A bout of head tennis from the free-kick ends with Aaronson’s effort to keep the ball alive ending ion Donnarumma’s grasp.
06:35pm
46 min: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Man City overload on the right as they line up for the kick off and Donnarumma duly kicks it up that wing but Leeds defend the high ball well and force City back into their own half.
06:22pm
Half-time: Leeds United 0 Man City 1
Leeds started well, flooding forward like a swarm of wasps but couldn’t score and then City showed their class and quality. Leeds have had several good chances, though the two best, Calvert-Lewin at the back post and Aaronson on the break would probably not have survived VAR scrutiny. City grew into the game, established the tempo, kept poking at the defensive frailties of Leeds’ full-backs who are attacking tyros until they scored.
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It’s been a good game.
06:17pm Video • Goals
GOAL!
Leeds 0 Man City 1 (Semenyo) Cherki plays a fine pass from the left to the under-lapping Ait-Nouri who squares it low and at pace and Semenyo slides in to finish from six yards. Leeds undone about 10 seconds before half-time. City have caused Leeds problems down that wing consistently for the past 20 minutes.
06:16pm
45+1 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Ait-Nouri burns past Bogle to the byline but Gruev sprints across to block the cross fizzed through the six-yard box and Amapdu clears his lines. One more minute to come.
06:14pm
44 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Reverse pass from Justin to the inside-left is chested down by Calvert-Lewin into Aaronson’s path but it skids away from the young American.
06:13pm
43 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
O’Reilly’s velvet touch in the box as he turned and slipped in Marmoush was breathtaking. But Struijk was alert and slid in to ensure Marmoush couldn’t shoot. Darlow smothers the loose ball.
06:11pm
42 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Excellent save by Darlow from O’Reilly’s bullet header and he bounces up to ensure the ball goes out for a corner rather than allowing Marmoush a chance to pounce.
06:10pm
41 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Now Stach does win the ball off Rodri and strides towards halfway and releases Aaronson down the right. He looked offside but play continued until he went one-on-one with the keeper, his penultimate touch taking him too close and the giant, octopus like Donnarumma blocks the attempted dink.
06:08pm
39 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
It’s all City. While Leeds can ‘clear’ the ball, the keep losing the second ball so it’s debatable whether it deserves to be called a clearance at all. No, you’re the pedant.
06:07pm
37 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Dias crosses twice into the box from the right. Leeds win both headers but City are encamped and the home side cannot get out of their defensive third.
06:05pm
35 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Struijk heads the corner out but the Leeds box remains under siege until Struijk intercepts a pass but then Ampadu overruns Struijk’s pass and back come City.
06:04pm
33 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Having weathered a storm, City are now looking very dangerous and are hogging the ball in menacing positions. Nunes flashes a cross through the box and neither Cherki, Semenyo or Marmoush bought a ticket. Ampadu eventually turns it behind for a corner.
06:02pm
31 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
City beat the press and work the ball into midfield but Nunes’ cross is met by Ampadu who slices his clearance and Bernardoi and Gudmundsson fight for the high ball. Gudmundsson catches Bernardo with a high boot but the linesman sees nothing wrong and gives the throw-in. Guardiola goes garrity in his technical area.
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Calvert-Lewin fires a shot across goal and past the far post – Jason Cairnduff/Action Images via Reuters
05:59pm
29 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Very slick passing from City maintains their dominance of the possession stats, which was at 73-27 a minute or so ago but Leeds again block the cross and push them back to halfway.
05:57pm
27 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Gudmundsson must have three lungs. Now he sprints past Marmoush down the left and crosses too deep. Ait-Nouri puts it out for a throw from which Leeds are given a corner wrongly. There was a double-bounce off Ampadu when O’Reilly block-tackled him. Gudmundsson hacks at a shot from the deep corner, scuffing it into a City player.
05:55pm
25 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Now Gudmundsson also gets his free-kick when barged over by Nunes. It’s about 35 yards out, wide on the left. Calvert-Lewin wins the header from Stach’s cross but the ball skips away from Justin and out for a goal-kick.
05:53pm
24 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Stach’s shot from 20 yards belatedly earns Leeds a corner via a deflection but it’s well defended at the near post where Dias thwarts Struijk.
05:52pm
22 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Bogle blocks Ait-Nouri’s clearance and is first to the rebound, whipping it in from the byline. Aaronson makes a near-post run but Guehi slides in to knock it behind for what should have been a corner but the ref deems a goalkick.
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The big screen displays a message explaining that the game will be stopped for some players to take on water as they observe Ramadan – OLI SCARFF/AFP
05:49pm
20 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Leeds win the ball back again and feed it to Justin to the right of the D. His low shot is saved by Donnarumma diving low to his right. When the keeper rolls the ball to Rodri, Gruev snaps into the press, wins the ball but also is judged to have fouled the Ballon d’Or winner.
05:48pm
18 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Struijk chips a long pass up the inside-left and Calvert-Lewin who has a head start on Guehi, holds him off as he sprints into the box and then drives a shot across goal and past the far post from a tight angle with his left foot.
05:46pm
17 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Leeds settle for a throw instead and Ampadu hurls it into the six-yard box. Donnarumma claims it easily and under no pressure.
05:45pm
16 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Gudmundsson taps the ball past Nunes and tries to race down the outside and hits the deck as he attempts to wriggle past. He beseeches the ref for a free-kick but nothing doing.
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There are jeers around Elland Road when play is stopped for players to break their fast for Ramadan. The break was announced with a message on the big screen.
What the f—ing hell was that,” is chanted from one section, who also target Sky Sports with another chant.
05:44pm
14 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
City’s players who are observing Ramadan are breaking their fast in a prearranged pause in play. Some booing as Marmoush, Cherki, Ait-Nouri and co take on liquids.
Rayan Ait-Nouri tangles with Jayden Bogle – Getty Images /Shaun Botterill
05:41pm
12 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Nunes beats Gudmundsson down the outside on the right and crosses low. Rodon is first to it and lumps it back whence it came for a throw-in.
05:40pm
10 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
City take the sting out of Leeds’ ardour with some tempo-setting probing, passing and keep-ball.
05:40pm
9 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Semenyo blazes over from 20 yards but was offside.
05:38pm
8 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Leeds have started like a train and set off on another blistering raid up the right by virtue of Justin’s long, curlling pass that allows Calvert-Lewin to link up with Bogle and Stach but they’re not quite on the same wavelength and the ball goes out for a goalkick when Bogle didn’t read Calvert-Lewin’s return pass.
05:36pm
6 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Aaronson slips a pass out to Stach who hits an early cross from the right to Justin in the City box. The right-sided centre-half bolstering the attack then fires a pass across the penalty area that evades Calvert-Lewin and Gudmundsson at the back post.
05:34pm
4 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Aaronson gallops into space down the flank and whips over a cross that Calvert-Lewin slices wide with his left foot from eight yards. VAR says there was a push on Guehi so it wouldn’t have stood.
05:33pm
3 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Stach, Gruev and Rodon snapping into tackles as Leeds hound City and try to stop them setting their own tempo. A chorus of ‘We’re not really here’ from the away fans is booed. Leeds play out from the back but lose it when Gruev’s pass goes astray. But then Leeds tackle O’Reilly and break down the right.
05:31pm
1 min: Leeds 0 Man City 0
Leeds kick off, attacking from left to right, and they knock it back to Darlow who boots it long for Aaronson to meet the flick-on and barrel towards the box. He goes down under Guehi’s challenge and the ball rolls out for a goal-kick.
05:26pm
The teams are in the tunnel
Leeds are in white, Man City in black.
05:24pm
The replacements
Omar Marmoush has one goal in 15 Premier League appearances to date this season and four in 24 in all comps. Antoine Semenyo has three in six in the league and five in 10 overall (plus 10 in 20 for Bournemouth including one here in September’s 2-2 draw)
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Omar Marmoush partners Antoine Semenyo up front – Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
05:16pm
Daniel Farke speaks to Sky Sports
The lads delivered really well in the last away game and we won against Fulham and Nottingham Forest with the same line-up. We face a world-class side in red-hot form. We need a top performance in all aspects, with the ball, against the ball, transitions, set pieces.
I prefer of course that Erling is not available but it takes nothing away from their strength and class.
05:08pm
Guardiola explains Haaland’s absence
04:42pm
Precautionary absence
Haaland understood to have picked up a knock in training earlier in the week.
It’s the first Premier League or Champions League match he will have missed so far this season. He sat out the League Cup semi-final, second leg victory over Newcastle in which Omar Marmoush scored two.
04:34pm
Your teams in black and white
Leeds United Darlow; Justin, Rodon, Struijk; Bogle, Stach, Ampadu, Gruev,Gudmundsson; Aaronson; Calvert-Lewin.
Substitutes Lucas Perri, Gnonto, Bornauw, Tanaka, Bijol, Nmecha, Piroe, Longstaff, James.
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Man City Donnarumma; Matheus Nunes, Dias, Guéhi, Aït Nouri; Rodri; Semenyo, Silva, O’Reilly, Cherki; Marmoush.
Substitutes Trafford, Foden, Khusanov, Savio, Gonzalez, Doku, Ake, Stones, Reijnders.
Referee Peter Bankes (Merseyside)
04:26pm
Premier League’s top scorer misses match
Erling Haaland has not travelled with the Manchester City squad to face Leeds, the club he supported as a boy. Pep Guardiola is yet to reveal the reasons why the Premier League’s top scorer misses out.
He said yesterday that City cannot rely on Haaland as their only ‘outball’ as centre-backs such as Newcastle’s Dan Burn are engaging him in physical duels.
“We have to try to use it as little as possible, even with man-marking,” he said. “We have make an alternative, not in man- marking, it is long balls against Erling and a centre-back, otherwise, every three days doing that for a striker like Erling is unsustainable.”
04:22pm
Fantasy Football players
Urgently looking to see who their vice-captain is.
Haaland, a boyhood Leeds fan, misses the game against the club for whom his father played when the great striker was born.
04:16pm
Erling Haaland injured and out of City squad
Rayan Cherki comes in for the injured Erling Haaland in the only change.
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04:16pm
Leeds are unchanged
04:13pm
Line-up rumours
Some at the ground are reporting that Erling Haaland was not on the City team coach.
04:12pm
Betting on this evening’s game?
Advertisement | GambleAware | 18+ Betting on the football tonight? Take a look at these tips and offers chosen by Telegraph Media Group
03:59pm
Preview: City looking for a hat-trick of Elland Road victories
Good afternoon and welcome to live coverage of the Premier League match between Leeds United and Manchester City at Elland Road. City start the game in rude health, with four wins and a draw from their last five games in this competition, 13 points secured with the new signing Marc Guéhi in the team and a win today, which would make it three in a row for them in LS11 for the first time since 1928, would put them only two points behind Arsenal at the top after 28 games each. A first home victory for Leeds in five meetings, stretching back to 2004 the year when they fell out of the top flight and endured 16 years of trauma, would put them on 34 points, the same as Brighton, but they would remain in 15th.
Leeds’ transformation since walking into the away dressing room at the Etihad in November 2-0 down, changed ‘base formation’ as Daniel Farke always calls it, scored twice yet ultimately lost by virtue of Phil Foden’s exceptional skill and tenacity, has become a well-worn story. In the 14 matches since that defeat they have taken 20 points with four wins and eight draws but they have not played with an orthodox 3-5-2, the home victory over Chelsea apart, for all that many minutes, evolving styles and shapes as the game demands, innovation particularly on the right side of their defence with the right centre-back often galloping up the wing and the right wing-back drifting from inside-right to No 10 and even inside-left, whence Bogle scored against Nottingham Forest.
City’s system remains as fluid as ever and, with the addition of one of the best three goalkeepers in the world, England’s centre-half and the sprightly and spite-like Antoine Semenyo charging left, right and centre, to their cadre of world-class players, they will be as formidable as ever. Leeds fans will cling to that second half performance four months ago and to the imperishable memories of Stuart Dallas and a Marcelo Bielsa-orchestrated 10-man away victory over an even better City side in 2021, but they will need their team to show more belief and attacking gusto than they did against Arsenal a couple of weeks ago when they soiled the bed against a side they seem unable to match anymore.
Time, though, is on their side. Of the 11 Leeds televised Premier League games this season that have kicked off after 4.30pm, they have won five, drawn six and lost only one, all five wins and two of the draws at home.
Noah Okafor alone is on Leeds’ casualty list while City’s Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic are at home still nursing long-term injuries.
