Key stats
- Granit Xhaka has assisted five goals in the Premier League this season (one in this game), more than any other Sunderland player.
- Dominic Calvert-Lewin has contributed to goals in his last six games in the Premier League (seven goals, zero assists).
- Leeds United are undefeated in their last five games in the Premier League; their last joint-longest unbeaten streak was from May 15th, 2022 to August 21st, 2022.
Highlights
Analysis
Dominic Calvert-Lewin has scored eight goals in the Premier League this season (one in this game), more than any other Leeds United player.
Leeds carried most of the momentum throughout the match.
Match report
The opening stages of this game were perhaps the furthest thing from a Christmas cracker imaginable, with the only contentious incidents surrounding Joe Rodon, who was twice clattered by two challenges that went unpunished.
His decision to stay and hobble on was one which proved costly to Leeds too, as it was his failure to get across to Simon Adingra, who met Granit Xhaka’s impressive reverse pass and curled home the opening goal on 28’.
Rodon was swiftly withdrawn after the goal, and Ao Tanaka’s introduction helped Daniel Farke’s men win a corner, via which Jaka Bijol could only power directly at Robin Roefs.
The biggest chance of the remaining first-half play also fell Leeds’ way five minutes before the break, when Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s delicate lay-off teed up Brenden Aaronson, whose effort was destined for the far corner until a heroic Trai Hume block on the line.
The Sunderland goal had lived a charmed life before the break, but that finally expired within three minutes of the restart.
A sweeping Leeds counter attack had the Sunderland defence all at sea, and Aaronson took full advantage by finding Calvert-Lewin, who swept home to become the first Leeds player to score in six successive top-flight games since John McCole back in 1959/60.
It was largely one way traffic towards Roefs’ goal for most of the second half, but Leeds were struggling to land the knockout blow on the Black Cats. Jayden Bogle spurned their best chance to nose ahead when he could only bundle a bouncing ball wide of the far post.
Farke’s men were unable to translate their dominance into a winning goal, as they were forced to settle for a point, but given that stretched their buffer to the drop zone to seven points, that certainly wasn’t a disaster. Sunderland remain in the thick of the European race but will see this as a huge opportunity missed.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United)
Post-match comments
Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris speaking to Sky Sports:
"We started well with many changes in the squad. We had the opportunity to score the second goal and maybe it would have changed the dynamic of the game.
"They changed their shape a little bit and we struggled to find the references defensively and offensively which is normal because of the amount of changes we had in the squad. You can prepare the game properly but to then be adaptive in real time is not an easy task. In the future I think it will be better but we had to go through this experience."
Leeds boss Daniel Farke speaking to Sky Sports:
"Compliments to the lads but I'll be honest I'm a bit in between today because we showed great mentality to come back today from a losing position and a great performance from minute 30 until the end.
"It's a good point on the road, no other team has had a better result here. Sunderland are unbeaten at home. I had a gut feeling, during and before the game, that we could win it, and if we have a look at the statistics we have dominated the game."