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Key events
69 min And he tries the swinging ball effect, a deflection off the wall that wins a corner; Leeds saw him off.
68 min Nice from Sara, sensing Makara behind her and darting around the corner, taking the inevitable foul. Norwich free kick, 30 yards left of centre; can they put Meslier under pressure? McLean seems to be reading for a chance…
67 min Farke has Piroe ready to enter; I guess Rutter will make way.
66 min No, not like that. Grow up.
65 min But Norwich stepped up, a cross from the left too strong for Sargent, then, at the back post, Fassnacht’s poor first touch meant a Leeds counter. So, Fasnacht brings back Gnonto, gets carded, then Stacey instantly loses his chance, unimpressed by Somerville’s fight against him.
64 min Giannoulis, who was a decent outlet down the left, crosses for Sargent, but the ball is at an awkward height and leaves his team-mates with no options, so Leeds clear.
63 min Gnonto fell, by the way, as he was caught by a stray book that oozed blood. He will be OK.
63 min Also continues:
62 min “I’m with you on the Meslier thing,” says Jeremy Boyce. “He still looks like he’s not old enough to shave yet, but you’d think he’d have no more nerves to break.” He was El Loco Bielsa’s choice for the style of play we all loved, and he really did it was he was very young. He’s taken it and he’s been great, it’s a shame to see his confidence go down so far.”
61 min Change for Norwich, Rowe – who has returned well – replaced by Fasnacht.
59 min The corner doesn’t come but Leeds do, Gray sends them forward with a clever pass. Then Kamara – increasingly influential – enters the box, one touch on Bayram when he could have shot, looking to end the attack. But Leeds try again, Gray drops to Byram, who this time misses his shot. The visitors are the better side now.
58 min Gnonto, who had been quiet, slipped into the box, prompting someone to challenge him, but Norwich kept their composure, then a poor header from Duffy allowed Somerville to dive into the box, his near-post shot deflected back.
57 min Leeds make room for Firpo on the left, Kamara and Somerville patiently work the space, but a low cross is easily saved by Gunn at his near post.
56 min I was wondering when Farke might start Pirro, but I think there could also be a throw-in for Daniel James, who is fit again, as the game stretches and Norwich look for an advantage to take against Leeds.
54 min Giannoulis tags in late on Gnonto, accidentally brushing spikes across the torso in the process, and he’s booked.
53 min Now then! Giannoulis makes a break down the left – he’s done it often today – but this he finds, controls and cuts for Sainz, arriving on the breakaway. But he passes it slightly behind him and, taking it out, he can only send his shot wide of the near post.
53 min It was a slow start to the second half; Leeds will be happy with that, Norwich – who you think should win today – less so.
51 min Duffy runs into Somerville from behind, autographs his calf, and when play stops, he’s carded,
50 min Again Leeds kept the ball before Meslier again went into touch. I feel for him because after 50 minutes he is still not settled.
49 min Excellent from Rowe, carrying the ball across the midfield, then clearing space with a clever shop, sending Sainz in behind… but Byram, at full stretch, slides in to make a decisive challenge.
49 min Leeds really struggled to get Gray on the ball in the first half and I wonder if his future is a bit deeper, as a schemer rather than a creator.
47 min I don’t think it will be long before Farke sends out Piroe if his team continues to struggle to build and sustain attacks. But for now it is as it was.
46 min We go back again, learning that Leeds’ 90 points were the most – proportionately, including when they were two to win – by a team not promoted from Hull in 1910.
Our teams are back, Norwich go first. The next 45 minutes may be their best chance.
in the studio they disagree that Rutter’s chance was the best of the first half; they targeted Sargent’s missed header. I’m just not sure he could get the angle he needed to direct the hoe given Rodon’s position.
Halftime Entertainment: classic from august 1980
HALF TIME: Norwich City 0-0 Leeds United
Norwich upped the tempo but the best chance was one that Rutter missed – completely – unable to even put a kick to the ball when it was crossed to him. Both sides can play better.
45 min Gnonto pushes Giannoulis off the ball, he doesn’t like it when he’s penalized so he applauds the referee and gets a yellow card. I once got a yellow card for that in a cup semi-final, three seconds after I got a yellow card for talking about – not at – the referee when he was nearby. I then went home, not bothering to tell this detail to my then in-laws, only for the Jewish Chronicle to reveal my shame in their coverage of the match.
44 min I am absolutely certain that Leeds will take a nil draw here; in any case they’d back themselves to win at home and probably figure they’ll need to in order to progress, but with no away goals it’s much harder for the second-placed away team to overturn the disappointing result of the first match.
42 min For all the good it does them, pumped towards Giannoulis from the far end of the box. He can do nothing with it and although Norwich keep the attack going, Gianulis’ cut-back to Sainz at the far post is deflected wide.
41 min More passes from Leeds that build a base in the game. But Rowe, playing well on his return, prompts Gray to turn it over and Stacey will now drive the ball into the box from 40 yards.
39 min Somerville began to influence things, collecting a decent pass to Gray and attacking his man. This time Stacey looks to have dropped out but Leeds are pulling him on the ball in decent areas and if this continues he will eventually punish Norwich’s generosity.
38 min Sainz shoves Gnonto, who hints at hamstring dexterity, but the ref isn’t an ass, so he keeps the game on.
37 min Byram robs Sainz and finds Gray, who promptly charges forward; however, nothing came of the attack and Leeds came back to fire things up.
36 min Somerville taps Gnonto, takes a reversal and attacks Duffy, handling the outside only to make a mess afterwards.
35 min I wonder if Leeds’ situation without a striker would work quite well if they were up front because they have so much speed and guile up front. They would be claws penetrating space from the depths, but the game situation right now doesn’t give them that option.
33 min Wonderful from Rowe, baiting Firpo then, Chris Waddle-esque, using the outside of his foot to chip the ball beyond the defender, drawing the inevitable foul; Gray headed in a free kick.
32 miles But Norwich came back, Stacey moved forward and closed in on Sainz at the back post…but pushed too hard. Now this becomes a fun match; a goal for either side would really set things on fire.
29 min Leeds break it down, trying to stop Norwich’s momentum and get a foothold in the game. And Summerville combined beautifully with a Rutter foot ball and a clever touch-off in response before Duffy and Gunn, advancing off his line, went for the same ball and it fell well for Gnonto who slid into an empty net… only for the linesman to raise the flag. That’s the right decision too, but the visitors had 705 possessions in the last five minutes and will feel better about that.
28 min Better than Leeds, Somerville wins high and moves the ball to Gnonto… but a great sliding challenge from Nunez averts the danger. Norwich have dominated Leeds physically so far.
26 min I wonder if Farke is already wondering how to get his forwards into this game. On the one hand, Norwich always had a chance to start quickly, on the other, Leeds’ inability to keep the ball allowed them to continue to dictate.
24 min A quick throw allows Sargent to find Rowe who, crossing with the outside of his boot, sends a lovely ball into the corridor. But no-one bets, so he blasts across the face and Leeds clear. However, they are under him and this lack of out-ball is causing them problems: they cannot get him forward and build from there.
23 min Meslier then takes another shot and Norwich must try to test him whenever possible because he is nervous.
22 min And here it is Norwich again, Rowe does well and finds Sargent who moves another one to McLean, the follow up shot flying high and wide.
22 min As for Daniel Farke, who looks like a student who loves chamber music, he will be pleased that Leeds conceded few chances but unhappy with how they kept the ball.
21 min It’s good work from Norwich, winning a series of set pieces in dangerous areas. But Wagner will be disappointed because their poor performances have meant they haven’t created any decent chances and this latest one is no different.
20 min Rodon heads clear but Rutter, the right-back, tries to bring Sarah out, he is caught and forced to concede another free-kick, left and footed wide of the touchline.
18 min Good work from Sainz, running at the Leeds defense and beating one man, then leaving another; Gruev fouls him and it’s another free-kick for Norwich, 30 yards, for Nunes to take. He goes short and wide, Giannoulis crosses and Gray heads back; the tension is rising…
16 min Meslier had already made a mess of a couple of kicks and when he played on a team-mate in trouble, Norwich won a free-kick 25 yards out and formed a second wall in front of Leeds; Sarah looks cute, dropping low around her near side and the save is easy for the keeper.
15 min Stacey finds a lane down the right, Rowe takes it in, and the cross is decent, heading for the penalty and Sargent is there! But Rodon does enough to get in the way and fails to make proper contact, looking to glance into the far corner and sends the ball wide.
13 min Rodon almost makes first contact but the ball is cleared to Gnonto on the edge and he makes a decent connection, slotting low. But a defender – I can’t see who – blocks the shot and Norwich’s counter doesn’t come.
13 min Summerville takes over, Stacey goes from behind, so here comes the corner.
12 min Sargent nips in front of Roden and takes the ball to his side, but the defender recovers well to slide over – more desperately than he would have liked. Leeds then break through and win a free-kick on the left, just outside the box; Somerville and Gruev are behind the ball.
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