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Marcelo Bielsa took full responsibility for Leeds’ poor performance after they fell to Hull 9-8 from the Carabao Cup on penalties.
Helmet forward Mallik Wilks’ deflected shot early in the first half appeared to sink his former club, but Ezgjan Alioski made it 1-1 in injury time by scoring a tying goal that Bielsa’s team did not deserve.
The Tigers held their ground on penalties. Alioski’s penalty shot hit a post and Hull captain Lewie Coyle, another former Leeds player, saw his effort saved.
Leeds midfielder Jamie Shackleton’s penalty was held out at 8-8 and Hull defender Alfie Jones then converted to send Hull into the third round.
“The players didn’t fit in very well,” said Bielsa, who made 11 changes after his team’s impressive performance in Saturday’s first Premier League loss to Liverpool.
“This is the responsibility of the coach and, therefore, I feel responsible. It was not a good game for our team.”
Bielsa made full debuts to Rodrigo’s record signing, plus young defenders Oliver Casey and Charlie Cresswell, while players like Ian Poveda, Mateusz Bogusz and Leif Davis had made only a handful of appearances between them.
“They definitely tried hard,” Bielsa said. “But we didn’t defend well and we didn’t attack well.
“There was an error in the coordination between the three sectors of the team.”
Hull manager Grant McCann stated that his team’s display was the best he had seen since taking over the club in June 2019.
The Tigers won 2-0 at Gillingham at the weekend in their first game of the season after relegation to the third division and McCann, also eager to experiment, made six changes.
“I thought we had improved him a bit since the game at Gillingham and for me this is the best performance I have seen as a club coach,” he said.
“I told the guys that after the game. We can talk about the games in Fulham and Forest in the Championship, but tonight, in terms of a complete performance, it’s the best I’ve seen since I’ve been a coach.”
Impressive striker Wilks, whose loan from Barnsley became permanent in July, had several opportunities to increase Hull’s lead before and after the break, but was denied by Leeds goalkeeper Kiko Casilla.
The Tigers’ team, Greg Docherty and James Scott, also came close to making the roster.
“With so many opportunities, to come to Elland Road and have the opportunities that we had. They were still a strong team on the field, some great players who have done well,” McCann added.
“We are very happy with all the performance, the performance of the team. It was outstanding from start to finish.”
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