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When the final whistle sounded, Steve Bruce stared at the players collapsing disconsolately on the field before turning to offer Marcelo Bielsa a polite punch. The Leeds coach felt this was not the time for social distancing and immediately put both hands on the shoulders of his Newcastle counterpart.
A couple of minutes of intense monologue from the Argentine followed, resulting in a rare smile from Bruce. “He was very appreciative of my team and said we deserved more,” wrote the Newcastle coach. “He said we played the second half very well.”
After nine Premier League games without a win, and 11 in all competitions, Bruce seemed genuinely buoyed by a greatly improved display in the second half after an appalling first 45 minutes. “The performance was much, much better,” said a manager who detected cause for optimism after Allan Saint-Maximin left the bank. “I’ve seen enough to know we’ll be okay.”
Without fully reflecting Newcastle’s alarming slide into dangerous descending waters, Leeds have suffered a mini-depression of their own in recent weeks, but memories of a three-game losing streak diminished as Raphinha and Jack Harrison each scored a goal and Bielsa’s defense for once stood firm in setting pieces.
Like Bruce, the Leeds coach said he “had not seen” the moment when Rodrigo appeared to spit on Fabian Schär as the Newcastle defender lay face down on the field, sparking an altercation that resulted in cautions for both players. .
Bolstered by news of an impending major investment from the San Francisco 49ers NFL franchise that will, among other things, allow them to renovate Elland Road, Bielsa’s side got off to a strong start. When Jacob Murphy fumbled the ball too easily within his own field, Patrick Bamford and Rodrigo combined to conjure up a shot opportunity on the counter that Raphinha delighted to convert.
When the Brazilian winger encountered Rodrigo’s cut on the edge of the box and, having put in a stabilizing touch, shot low and left-handed past Karl Darlow, Bruce shoved his hands into the pockets of his club anorak and looked down. down. His only consolation must have been that there were no fans inside St James’ Park to corner him. Given the ease with which Bielsa’s players controlled possession and overwhelmed their team in a midfield dominated by Kalvin Phillips, the invective echoing from a full Gallowgate End would have hurt.
At one point, Bruce scratched his head as if an insect irritated him. On the court, Leeds was invading their hosts and Harrison had no babysitter. Time and again, they dissected Bruce’s five-man rear at halftime and, if Bamford hadn’t put in one extra touch, they could have won the game at halftime. However, once Stuart Dallas had a handball goal disallowed early in the second period, Newcastle transformed. When Jamal Lascelles won a major challenge, Jonjo Shelvey and Callum Wilson put the ball in the path of Miguel Almirón’s advance, who delighted in squeezing a shot under Ilan Meslier.
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Too often, Newcastle quickly lost focus. Having left Harrison unmarked, they watched in horror as he caught Raphinha’s pass with the outside of his left foot and the resulting shot crashed from inside a post.
The time had come for Bruce to reintroduce Saint-Maximin after a two-month absence induced by the coronavirus. The Frenchman made an instant impact, baffling Leeds and galvanizing his teammates in equal measure as the game moved from one extreme to the other. Guided by Saint-Maximin, Jamal Lewis hit the crossbar and Meslier saved Schär and Shelvey well, but Leeds held firm. “It became very difficult,” Bielsa said. “But it was a very important victory for us.”
