Graham Smyths 'The Verdict':
https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/football/leeds-united/credible-leeds-united-ringleader-shows-up-recent-circus-act-graham-smyths-leicester-city-verdict-4397651Everything in the lead up to Leeds' visit to the Kingpower Stadium and everything that unfolded on the pitch served as a contrast between what went before and what is happening right now, because Farke called it, all of it, on Wednesday and then his team produced it, all of it, on Friday night.
...
There is something to be said for a manager whose words are credible both contemporaneously and retrospectively, just as believable pre-game as post-game. There is a lot to be said for a manager who can back up his theory with practical demonstration, his philosophy with results. And there is so much to like about a team who can do both sides of the game well.
...
One man who never really got into it at all was Vardy, so often a tormentor of Leeds in the past, and his half was summed up and ultimately ended by a loose touch that let Leeds break to win a corner, which in turn led to another corner. When James curled it in, Byram thumped a header goalwards and though Mads Hermansen kept it out Rutter was there, played onside by Vardy, to stick in a deserved opener. Up went the away end, off went Vardy.
...
But this was no end-to-end stuff and the defensive effort could rarely be described as desperate because, as Archie Gray demonstrated so well, even when the ball landed at feet in the area and begged a hoofed clearance, composure presented a better route out of trouble. More than once the 17-year-old resisted the temptation to lash it away, instead picking passes that started counters. One of those could have sealed the deal but James' shot was well saved.
Phil Hay/The Athletic:
Leeds are a cat among automatic promotion pigeons – they are not backing off
....
For Farke, the old rules of the Championship apply: that even if it is best to win the title, and even if that is what he is accustomed to as a manager, the priority here is escaping the division and giving yourself the best chance of doing so. There is a reason why so much is made of the annual play-off final and why that fixture has carried the moniker of the sport’s most lucrative contest for more than 20 years. In the end, the pot of gold is the same.
...
The play-offs, as any fule kno, are where Leeds go to die but with November a few days old and Farke’s squad bearing their teeth, any paranoia about them is for another day.
What the King Power saw yesterday were two teams who should go up: Leicester on the strength of their exceptional league position and Leeds on the strength of a performance that City could not resist.
Not exactly all bets off, but a cat among some hitherto unruffled pigeons.
Henry Winter/The Times
Just back from the King Power. Beautifully organised and observed Remembrance. On-field, #LCFC below par. #LUFC full of belief. Archie Gray, composed and bold, a real prospect. Only 17. Ampadu class. Kamara immense. Rodon superb. Rutter transformed. Meslier wonder-save. #LEILEE
https://x.com/henrywinter/status/1720602793470226664?s=20Eirik Aase/Championship Norge
Enorm seier for Leeds United. En seier som virkelig kan sette fyr på sesongen for hvittrøyene. Imponerende prestasjon fra A til Å. Den redningen til Ilian Meslier på tampen der var helt rå.
https://x.com/eirikaase/status/1720561187866161171?s=20