Daniel Farke had no hesitation in playing scoring duo Wilfried Gnonto and Luis Sinisterra in Leeds’ 4-3 win at Ipswich.
The pair have been missing for a fortnight; Gnonto after submitting a transfer request as he tried to force a way out of the club and Sinisterra as his own future remained unresolved.
Farke sidelined the pair and was firm when discussing them in the week, particularly on the subject of Italy international Gnonto who he said had apologised after refusing to play.
The duo came back into the side as Farke secured his maiden league win as Leeds boss, with first goals for Georginio Rutter and Joel Piroe on his debut ending Ipswich’s perfect record.
“I wasn’t too concerned about these two decisions (to pick Gnonto and Sinisterra) to be honest because I’ve watched them during the training week and they looked really, really sharp and disciplined and I had a really good feeling with this decision,” Farke said.
“I was in general pleased with our offensive firepower, especially because we played a side who just conceded one goal over their first four games.
“It’s a difficult place to come here, they played full of confidence and excited the home fans in the stadium and for us then to dig in and to grind out a result and to score four times is really, really good and especially the offensive play on the scoresheet.
“I am pleased for my offensive players that they showed real quality today and also clinical finishes and it’s good for the mood, good for the confidence, good for the table, good for them also to be off the mark in terms of goals and I am happy with this.”
Ipswich went ahead through a Joe Rodon own goal and pulled further strikes back through Nathan Broadhead in first-half injury time and Conor Chaplin late in the second.
It was not enough to extend Town’s unbeaten run to 22 games, though, and boss Kieran McKenna said. “I thought there was a lot more good than bad (from us), there are so many positives to take in the game.
“I thought we were the better and more dominant team in so many aspects of the game on and off the ball and there’s lots to be pleased about.
“On another day the game could have went differently.
“There was of course things for us to improve, big lessons to learn. Of course disappointment with the goals that we conceded in the first half.
“But that’s part of the adjustment about playing against a much better team, with much higher players – we’ll improve and we’ll learn from those mistakes and continue working to get better.
“I think overall there are so many things to give us confidence.
“It was a really intense start to the game … we were competing and got the goal, we were in a great position to go on and take control of the game and if we had been able to do that for a little while we would have been able to build up a lot more momentum.
“I had a feeling that today would be a high scoring game.”
Kayden Jackson’s darting run led to the first goal after seven minutes when his cross took a big deflection off Rodon to beat goalkeeper Illan Meslier.
Leeds equalised three minutes later through Rutter’s individual brilliance and the visitors took the lead in the 14th minute through Gnonto.
They went further ahead with 19 minutes on the clock when Town goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky could only parry a shot from Sinisterra to Piroe who gobbled up the rebound.
Ipswich got their second through Broadhead but Sinisterra netted the fourth before Chaplin’s goal.
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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