Leeds United came from behind to beat Derby County 3–1 in the third round of the FA Cup, progressing in the competition and highlighting the strength in depth within Daniel Farke’s squad.
The Whites went into the break trailing 1–0 at Pride Park after Ben Brereton Díaz handed the hosts a first-half advantage. However, Leeds returned with renewed intensity after the interval.
Wilfried Gnonto equalised in the 55th minute, and Ao Tanaka soon followed with the winning goal, completing a swift turnaround that sealed a place in the fourth round. James Justin added a third in injury time.
Joel Piroe’s missed penalty in the first-half has attracted the ire of manager Daniel Farke. However, Jermaine Beckford has spotted a huge error from the referee in the whole chaos.
Jermaine Beckford picked out a controversial Leeds United incident
Piroe’s missed penalty is likely to push him further down the pecking order at Leeds. However, Beckford insisted that the goalkeeper didn’t save it in a legal manner.
There was no VAR available for the game at Pride Park, and video technology would have shown that Derby goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom was off his line before the penalty was taken.
He believes Piroe would have been allowed to retake the penalty.
Beckford said on TNT Sports: “You have to look at the goalkeeper’s positioning. Great save.
“The penalty itself is not actually a bad penalty, but when you watch it back, is the goalkeeper off his line? Are both feet of his feet off the line?
“If there was VAR, possibly a conversation to be had to pull it back and take it again.”
Another refereeing error against Leeds
Refereeing errors against Leeds have become a common theme, and fans are now expecting some inconsistency from officials in every game.
There have been several controversial incidents over the course of the season. Official Anthony Taylor needed VAR intervention to penalise what many regarded as an obvious foul by Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konaté on Wilfried Gnonto at Elland Road, an offence that initially went unnoticed during play.
More recently, earlier in the season, Beckford was highly critical of the officiating after the 1–1 draw with Brentford, arguing that Dominic Calvert-Lewin should have been awarded a clear penalty.
Alan Shearer himself slammed the referee for allowing a penalty to Newcastle in Leeds’ 4-3 defeat at St. James’ Park on Wednesday night.
Pride Park added one more chapter to a referee making an obvious error, which went against Leeds.
