Connor Humm

Tue 13 April 2021 18:00, UK

Alan Hutton admitted he was blown away by the “unbelievable” defending shown by Leeds United against Manchester City on Saturday.

The former Aston Villa star, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, admitted the Whites looked a completely different team at the back compared to what he had seen earlier in the season.

Leeds managed to snatch a 2-1 win at City despite being sent down to 10 men just before half time.

Liam Cooper was given his marching orders after a VAR review, leaving the Whites at a disadvantage for the second half.

However, despite Ferran Torres’ equaliser, Stuart Dallas finished off a swift counter-attack to seal all three points.

Hutton claimed Leeds used their exceptional energy levels and pace to counter City’s attacking intent.

He also suggested there had been a significant transformation in the quality of defending from Marcelo Bielsa’s men.

“Fair play to Leeds, they stuck to their guns,” Hutton told Football Insider assistant editor Russell Edge.

“What they did really well that we never really saw at the start of the season was they defended unbelievably well as a unit. They knew that they had the pace and the players to hit Manchester City on the counter.

“They actually kind of sucked Man City in to get the players forward. John Stones was running forward, everybody was running forward and leaving gaps.

“They’ve got the pace and the energy. They’re probably one of the best teams energy-wise in the league, without a shadow of a doubt.

“They knew that and they just bided their time, they waited and they just exposed those gaps as soon as Man City flooded forward.”