A nightmare start for Leeds
Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier made a shocking error to gift Arsenal the lead against the Yorkshire outfit on Sunday afternoon.
Jesse Marsch’s side came into the game at the Emirates Stadium in desperate need of points, with Leeds facing the prospect of relegation from the Premier League.
On the other hand, Mikel Arteta’s men knew that a win would go a long way to cementing their place in the top four and would be a huge step forward in their pursuit of Champions League football.
Arsenal started the game on top and opened the scoring in the fifth minute – courtesy of a Meslier howler.
The 22-year-old Frenchman was passed the ball by Luke Ayling, but the shot-stopper took too long on the ball and was quickly closed down by former Leeds loanee Eddie Nketiah.
As Meslier attempted to boot the ball up the pitch, he was closed down by the Gunners frontman – who managed to deflect the ball into the Leeds goal and give the home side a 1-0 lead.
“Right lads, let’s keep it tight for the first five minutes or so”
Illan Meslier:
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) May 8, 2022
Things went from bad to worse for the away side, with Nketiah grabbing his second goal of the match in the 10th minute. The striker calmly converted from close range after a good attacking move from Arteta’s side.
This could be a long afternoon for Leeds
pic.twitter.com/mgBbWXXv3H— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) May 8, 2022
Marsch’s men were reduced to 10-men in the 27th minute when Ayling was sent-off for a rash challenge. The defender was initially shown a yellow card, but referee Chris Kavanagh was instructed to go to the VAR monitor to review the challenge.
Yeah, this really isn’t great…
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) May 8, 2022
The official didn’t take long to look at the screen before returning to the pitch to upgrade Ayling’s yellow to a red. Leeds winger Raphinha was booked for arguing with Kavanagh as he went to show Ayling his marching orders.
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