Daniel Farke and Leeds United will be fairly content to come away from Selhurst Park with a point after their 0–0 draw against Crystal Palace.
Leeds were handed a great chance to take the lead in the first half when they won a penalty inside the Palace box, but Dominic Calvert-Lewin pulled his effort wide, missing the opportunity to score his 11th Premier League goal of the season.
Things then took a turn for the worse just before half-time when Gabriel Gudmundsson picked up a second yellow card and was sent off. Despite being reduced to ten men, Leeds showed resilience in the second half and held on to secure a valuable point.
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner and his players were jeered off the pitch by the home fans, who didn’t enjoy watching their team dropping points against the ten men of Leeds.
Oliver Glasner makes an honest admission about Leeds United
The Palace boss conceded that his team should have done more to win the game, given Leeds were a man down, and feels his team paid for making some poor decisions in the final third.
Glasner said on the BBC’s Match of the Day: “We could have done better, but we know that sometimes it can be more difficult [playing 10 men].
“In a few other games, we have been in a similar situation. We were getting nervous and taking the wrong decisions. We weren’t clinical enough in the final third.
“In the end, a point and another clean sheet. It is progress. We have to stay calm and stay in our structure because I feel we are losing our structure then.”
Glasner also credited Leeds for being organised and physical and admitted that he doesn’t have the players to break down such a resilient defensive team.
He continued, “It’s not just one topic. We have won many times with a deep block, and I remember we won against Brighton with two red cards. It’s not so easy, especially when Leeds are so organised and so physical.
“Sometimes you need a player who will win in a 1v1 situation, but to be honest, we don’t have plenty of them.”
A valuable point in the context of things
Farke may well look back on the missed penalty as a key moment, as it could easily have delivered three crucial points away from home. That said, a draw is still a solid result for Leeds.
Reduced to ten men, Leeds faced heavy pressure throughout the second half, while the Crystal Palace players were jeered by their own supporters at full-time as they left the pitch.
With Nottingham Forest also failing to win, Leeds end the gameweek still three points clear of West Ham in 18th place.
If Leeds do manage to stay up this season, this could ultimately be seen as a hugely valuable point during a pivotal stage of the campaign for Farke and his side.
However, a home win over Brentford ahead of the international break will calm some nerves at Elland Road.
