Lukas Nmecha’s controversial late penalty on Monday gave Leeds lift-off on their return to the English Premier League with a 1-0 victory over Everton at a jubilant Elland Road.
The match was meandering toward a stalemate until James Tarkowski was harshly adjudged to have handled Anton Stach’s driven shot.
Nmecha had only been on the field for six minutes of his Leeds debut, but confidently fired past Jordan Pickford in the 84th minute.
Photo: AFP
“It’s not a penalty,” Tarkowski said. “I was pretty convinced it was going to get overturned [by video assistant referee].
“A bizarre moment and it cost us the point in the end,” he added.
Everton handed a debut to Manchester City loanee Jack Grealish in the second half, but the Toffees were left to rue not posing anything of an attacking threat in the opening 45 minutes.
Leeds are aiming to avoid the trend of the past two seasons when all three promoted clubs have been relegated.
Daniel Farke has also struggled previously with the step up to the English top-flight during two attempts as Norwich manager.
However, after Sunderland beat West Ham United 3-0 on Saturday, two of the three promoted sides have won on the opening weekend for only the third time in the Premier League era.
Farke’s men stormed to promotion by winning the Championship title with 100 points last season and Leeds started in confident fashion.
The home side were dominant in the opening half with 12 shots on goal, but only once made Pickford work when the England goalkeeper blocked from Joel Piroe.
Grealish’s introduction coincided with Everton’s best spell of the game.
Lucas Perri, one of Leeds’ eight summer signings, made an impressive save at his near post to turn behind Carlos Alcaraz’s powerful strike before Jake O’Brien headed the resulting corner over.
Just as Leeds looked like they might have to hold on for a point, they were gifted the chance for a perfect start with all three.
There was little Tarkowski could do as his left arm was down by his side as it blocked Stach’s effort.
Nmecha stayed calm amid the furor as the German international found the bottom corner.
“For a newly promoted side it [Elland Road] has to become a fortress,” Farke said. “It’s great to see the joy and the pride in their eyes. It’s great to give the supporters, who are so emotional and care so much about their club, something to cheer.”
Tarkowski had Everton’s only chance to make amends with an equalizer but he headed over.
The Philadelphia 76ers, fueled by 36 points from Tyrese Maxey and a triple-double from Joel Embiid, on Thursday beat the Houston Rockets 128-122 in an NBA overtime thriller. Cameroonian big man Embiid scored 32 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and handed out 10 assists, posting the ninth triple-double of his career to help the Sixers end the Rockets’ three-game winning streak. Rockets star Kevin Durant scored 36 points and Amen Thompson added 17, but Thompson was scoreless in the fourth quarter. Even so, the Rockets led by nine midway through the final frame, Maxey tying it at 115-115 with 40.1 seconds left. Durant missed a
Luka Doncic on Monday produced a 46-point masterpiece as the Los Angeles Lakers snapped the Chicago Bulls’ four-game winning streak with a 129-118 victory on the road. Doncic rattled in eight three-pointers on 15-of-25 shooting from the field, finishing with seven rebounds and 11 assists to lead an impressive Lakers effort at the United Center. LeBron James chipped in with 24 points, five rebounds and three assists, while Rui Hachimura delivered an eye-catching cameo off the bench with 23 points from nine-of-11 shooting. The win was another encouraging result for the Lakers after a 116-110 defeat of the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday. “We did
The Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo on Friday said that he will probably be out for an extended period after hurting his right calf again after a similar injury caused him to miss eight games earlier this season. Antetokounmpo had his right calf wrapped in the first half of their 102-100 loss to the Denver Nuggets. He did not appear comfortable the rest of the night and left for good with 34 seconds remaining. “At the end, I could not move no more, so I had to stop playing,” Antetokounmpo said. The two-time NBA Most Valuable Player said he expected to undergo an MRI
Taiwanese FORTUNES: Wu Fang-hsien and Hsieh Su-wei both advanced to the last 16 of the women’s doubles, but Ray Ho was ousted in the men’s doubles Carlos Alcaraz yesterday stepped up his quest to win a maiden Australian Open as he overwhelmed showman Corentin Moutet to reach the last 16, while Taiwan’s Wu Fang-hsien and Hsieh Su-wei both advanced to the last 16 of the women’s doubles. Three-time finalist Daniil Medvedev battled through on day six at a warm and sunny Melbourne Park, as did Coco Gauff. Top seed Alcaraz was never in danger against French 32nd seed Moutet, easing through 6-2, 6-4, 6-1 at Rod Laver Arena in 2 hours, 5 minutes. It was the Spaniard’s 100th Grand Slam match and he boasts a remarkable 87-13 win-loss record,
RSS