Joe Rodon foolish, Willy Gnonto heroic – Leeds player ratings v Swansea City
Daniel Farke’s side dropped two points at the death against Swansea City as Leeds United’s promotion charge took a brutal hit at Elland Road.
The Whites raced into a one-goal lead as a mix-up in the opposition penalty area saw the ball fall to Brenden Aaronson, who smashed home his first goal in nine league matches on Saturday, 29 March.
Swansea had the perfect opportunity to equalise as Joe Rodon was adjudged to have fouled Lewis O’Brien in the box, rather unnecessarily, but was bailed out as Illan Meslier denied Josh Tymon from the spot.
However, in the second half, the Leeds shot-stopper went from hero to zero as his mistake saw the ball drop at the feet of Harry Darling, who poked the ball home for the Swans’ equaliser.
With supporters becoming more and more frustrated about the thought of dropping points, Wilfried Gnonto thought he had saved the day, smashing home with five minutes of normal time remaining.
However, with just seconds left on the clock, substitute Zan Vipotnik silenced Elland Road, firing past Meslier in the sixth minute of added time, a goal which saw Leeds fall to second in the table.
Illan Meslier goes from hero to zero at Elland Road
Illan Meslier – 4
Saved a crucial penalty in the first half, but after months of Leeds fans crucifying Meslier, the goalkeeper eventually proved them right with a season-defining mistake to allow Darling to score.
Jayden Bogle – 6
Far less creative than his usual performances but won plenty of duels on the fight flank and kept Swansea quiet down his side of the pitch.
Joe Rodon – 2
Foolishly gave away the penalty in the first half, only to be let off the hook by his goalkeeper, but it could have been far worse for the Welshman, who could not believe the decision had been awarded against him.
Pascal Struijk – 7
A solid display in the centre of defence, even trying to push his side forward to find a much-needed winner at Elland Road. Was instrumental in causing chaos before Gnonto’s goal.
Joe Rothwell continues to push Leeds United forwards
Sam Byram (Off for Junior Firpo 72′) – 7
While he was not always so accurate in the attacking build-up, which is what Firpo is more well-known for, he rarely put a foot wrong when making a challenge and helped massively when alleviating the pressure on Leeds.
Joe Rothwell – 7
Created chances aplenty at Elland Road as he has continued to do when Leeds need him most, proving exactly why Leeds fans are keen for Rothwell to sign permanently this summer.
Ethan Ampadu (Off for Ao Tanaka 58′) – 5
A difficult day at the office for Ampadu, who made his first appearance since the middle of February. Picked up a needless yellow card and needed to be replaced. Leggy.
Dan James – 4
Suffered a very quiet first 45 minutes, but with the other attackers taken off instead of the Welshman, he was given the chance to showcase his talents and forced Lawrence Vigouroux into several saves.
Brenden Aaronson (On for Mateo Joseph 72′) – 8
Got Leeds off to the perfect start, capitalising on slack defending to open the scoring after just one minute, but his teammates failed to match his energy and could not do everything by himself.
Wilfried Gnonto celebrations quickly squashed as promotion race opens up
Manor Solomon (On for Largie Ramazani 72′) – 4
A super quiet performance from the Israeli international, unable to make much headway when taking Josh Key on and looked a little exhausted when being substituted.
Joel Piroe – 5
Was a handful for the defenders, forcing the goalkeeper into a couple of saves, but ultimately, could not make the most important impact by hitting the back of the net. Now, without a goal in five.
Substitutes
Ao Tanaka (On for Ampadu 58′) – 6
A few sloppy passes while getting to grips with the tempo of the game, but it was the right decision for him to replace Ampadu for the final 30 minutes.
Junior Firpo (On for Byram 72′) – 5
Didn’t manage to make much of an impact in the final third, losing a couple of duels in defence.
Largie Ramazani (On for Solomon 72′) – 4
Much like Firpo, the winger saw limited action on the ball, with Leeds having to defend for much of Ramazani’s time on the pitch.
Mateo Joseph (On for Aaronson 72′) – 6
Gave the Swansea defence more to think about than Piroe’s straight runs through the middle.
Wilfried Gnonto (On for James 85′) – 9 – Player of the Match
Did exactly what he was tasked with when coming on for the final five minutes, netting an essential goal and happily taking a yellow card for his celebrations, but that was crushed by Swansea’s late equaliser.