Leeds United produced a disappointing performance as they crashed out of the FA Cup following a 1-0 semi-final defeat against Chelsea at Wembley on Sunday.
Ethan Ampadu admitted after the game that his side were ‘nervous’ and not good enough in the first-half against Chelsea, which led to their eventual downfall.
The Leeds captain’s admission about the nervousness was telling as Leeds’ recent record at Wembley is atrocious, and it showed in how they approached the game on Sunday.
They looked all at sea in the first half as Chelsea took control, and a few of the players seemed overawed by the occasion of an FA Cup semi-final.
Micah Richards insists Leeds were never at their best
Leeds have lost in their last four visits to Wembley without scoring a goal, and that record seemed to have left an impact on the Whites on Sunday.
Richards insisted that the Leeds players were nowhere close to their best and appeared to have frozen, which is evident from their recent record at Wembley.
He lavished praise on the Leeds fans for turning up, but conceded that players got overrun in midfield and could have produced a bit more to trouble Chelsea on the day.
Richards said on the Rest Is Football podcast: “I wanted a little bit more from Leeds.
“I think they got overrun in midfield a little bit, too. The two against three in there didn’t really work. They had a go in the second half, but Leeds’ record at Wembley recently is not great at all.
“In terms of Leeds, they can hold their heads high, but I wanted a little bit more. I thought the fans on the day were great, they were singing all the way as they always do, but I wanted more from the team.”
They need to win on Friday night
Leeds squandered a great opportunity to end their 53-year wait for an appearance in the FA Cup final, but they have no time to dwell on it.
The weekend’s Premier League results meant Leeds are not out of the relegation dogfight yet, even though it would take a meltdown for them to go down from here on.
However, Leeds need to win against Burnley at Elland Road. It is likely to end any chance of Leeds getting relegated, but also lift the players after the Wembley disappointment.
They are likely to be without Gabriel Gudmundsson, who picked up a hamstring injury against Chelsea and is likely to be out for a couple of weeks at least.
However, Farke will be hoping Leeds have done enough to cope with the Swede’s absence over the final weeks of the season.
