Leeds United picked up another valuable point on the road after playing out a goalless draw with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
After Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s penalty miss was compounded by Gabriel Gudmundsson being sent off for a second yellow card just a few minutes later to end the first half, it looked as though Leeds were about to implode when they came out for the second 45 minutes.
However, Leeds produced a resolute defensive performance, limiting the hosts to minimal chances during the game as United earned a point despite playing the entirety of the second half with ten men.
A former Leeds United manager had his say on Gudmundsson’s controversial sending off, after the game, with Leeds fans being likely to agree with his verdict.
Simon Grayson blames the referee for ‘error’ during Crystal Palace vs Leeds
Speaking after the game on Leeds United’s Matchday Live, Grayson shared his thoughts on the incident, which could have easily proven to be costly.
“This is right on half-time (Gudmundsson’s second yellow), it is a really soft yellow card from the referee, and the referee doesn’t know that he’s already been booked,
“I think if he knew that, he wouldn’t book him here; it’s a human error that he doesn’t know he’s booked him already… He’s had a complete blank situation where he’s not remembered that he’s already been booked.”
The referring controversy did not stop there, however, with Palace winger Brennan Johnson committing a much worse foul than Gudmundsson’s, but the Welshman was not shown a second yellow in a bizarre contradiction from the referee during the second half.
Luckily for Leeds, they were able to still hold on and break their two-game losing streak in the Premier League.
READ MORE: Sky Sports pundit blasts £25m Leeds United ace after costly Crystal Palace miss – The Leeds Press
Data backs up the fact that Leeds deserved a point against Crystal Palace
After Calvert-Lewin’s penalty miss at the end of the first half, Leeds were not able to fashion out many more clear-cut chances during the game, but neither were Palace, and ultimately, a draw was a fair result.
- Palace managed to record just a 0.67 xG throughout the game, whilst Leeds recorded an xG of 1.12
- Leeds also had the only big chance of the game as Palace failed to make their numerical advantage count
- Karl Darlow did not have to make a single save during the game (Sofascore)
Whilst a point is undoubtedly a positive result for Leeds, there will be some who feel that if Gudmundsson wasn’t sent off, then today was a real opportunity to get at Palace and secure United’s second away win of the season.
