Daniel Farke says it was a ‘scandal’ Leeds United did not beat Cardiff City – but it was still a great point
That was because the Whites overcame what he described as a series of “hits in the neck” – some self-inflicted, some not – to come from 2-0 down and claim a 2-2 draw with Crysencio Summerville’s equaliser in the fifth added minute.
The character required pleased Farke in his opening game in charge of a club relegated from last season’s Premier League, even if in other respects he argued it was a “scandal” the hosts did not win.
“Against a really compact and good defensive side we created an unbelievable amount of set pieces and a lot of shooting positions,” he argued. “It was difficult because we didn’t have our normal strikers available – not (Patrick) Bamford, not (Georginio) Rutter, not (Mateo) Joseph (all injured) – and we had pretty small players on the pitch, we couldn’t work with high crosses.
“They found many, many good situations to be a threat on the Cardiff goal. The problem was our defensive behaviour before the goals we conceded was a bit too sloppy.
“Then to turn the game after a team digs even a bit more in and drops deeper was difficult.
“Even the (goal which made it) 1-2 was a picture of our situation. We scored an early goal in the second half and had the momentum but our skipper, Liam Cooper, injured himself and we had to play the next five minutes under-manned (until Charlie Cresswell came on).
“The team we had (then) was more or less just a bit stronger than a youth side but to keep going, stay cool and equalise in he last minute of added time was special and really good for the confidence.”
Cardiff took a 2-0 lead against the run of play in the first half, debutants Josh Bowler and Ike Ugbo scoring.
Leeds responded with Cooper’s 48th-minute header and Summerville’s late strike but it ought to have been better still.
“When you judge just from statistics it’s a scandal that we didn’t win,” said Farke.
“We had more than 70 per cent possession, they had two shots on target, two goals, we had 25 shots (in total), we had 10 to no corners.
“In the second half just one team was chasing the game and playing. It looked a bit like a powerplay (where ice hockey teams have a man advantage) at times.
“But sadly we missed two many good situations and they were also unbelievably effective.
“With so many hits in the neck and so many missed opportunities to equalise, it was a pretty important point not just for the table but also for the confidence, for the spirit, for the unity, for the mentality.”
Farke’s opposite number Erol Bulut reflected: “I think a draw is a fair result for us if we see the second half and how much pressure we got.”
Farke, who has been limited to three signings thus far – Ethan Ampadu started, Sam Byram began his second spell at the club as a half-time substitute and Karl Darlow was unused – has his fingers crossed that the injury which saw Cooper stretchered off is not too serious.
“He rolled his (left) ankle and we are checking him right now,” he said. “We desperately need him.”
