Where are Leeds' goals coming from in battle for Premier League survival?
[BBC] [PA Media] The ball bobbled up and on to Jayden Bogle's hand. Surrounded by Chelsea players, he kept fighting and in the middle of the ensuing melee, Noah Okafor pounced for a tap-in. That moment of chaos at Stamford Bridge back on a Tuesday night in early February was Leeds' most recent goal from open play in the Premier League.
Their most recent goal of any kind in the league came at Villa Park a little over a month ago, when Anton Stach's speculative blast from 35 yards sailed past Aston Villa's World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez. In the 419 minutes of football since Stach's goal, Leeds have had 64 shots, racked up 5. 43 expected goals and had 117 touches in the opponent's box - and failed to score.
If you are looking for mitigation, the four opponents over this barren run all rank in the top half of the league for fewest goals conceded - Manchester City (second), Sunderland (fifth), Crystal Palace (third) and Brentford (ninth). Structurally, Daniel Farke has the team well drilled out of possession making them tough to beat - only Bournemouth (15) have drawn more games than Leeds' 12. It is good to be solid at the back but where are Leeds' goals coming from?
A lack of quality chance creation and free-flowing build-up play have been issues that have forced United to overly rely on set-pieces for goals. The spread of assists across the team points to a lack of a recognised playmaker. The left side of defence has offered zero attacking output.
Leeds have regularly played midfielders in their front three, while in tight games you need quality off the bench to make a difference and they have not had it. They may be able to draw their way to safety but Leeds' Premier League status is in the balance if they cannot find a way to score more goals. Put yourself in Farke's shoes...