adminLeeds United were held to a goalless draw by Crystal Palace on Sunday, but things could have been worse.
A victory for Leeds at Elland Road would have moved them up to third place in the Premier League.
However, Pierre Sage’s side managed to keep out the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Noah Okafor, leaving Leeds fifth in the table.
That remains a respectable position to occupy, although some may view the result as a missed opportunity.
At the same time, Leeds could easily have ended the afternoon with no points.
That was due to an incident in the second half that ultimately went in Leeds’ favour.
Leeds escape Crystal Palace scare
Tyrick Mitchell thought he had put Palace ahead at Elland Road, only for VAR to step in.
Anan Khalaili was correctly deemed to have been in an offside position before cutting the ball back for Mitchell to finish.
However, as Paul Robinson highlighted during Sky Sports’ live coverage of the match, Khalaili should never have found himself offside.
“He should keep himself onside,” Robinson said. “He’s looking across the whole Leeds back five and can see every single one of them.
“He can have no excuse to run offside in that position. He’ll be devastated.”
Leeds supporters celebrated the disallowed goal as if their own side had scored, but did the Whites deserve more from the encounter?
What do the stats say about Leeds 0-0 Crystal Palace?
Daniel Farke’s side did enjoy the better of the contest against Palace, who have endured a slow beginning under Sage – at least in the league.
Leeds recorded 13 shots compared to Palace’s 12, with two and four of those efforts respectively finding the target.
However, the expected goals (xG) figure provides a clearer indication of how the game unfolded.
United registered an xG of 1.36 compared to their opponents’ 0.76, indicating that they created the better chances to secure victory.
Ultimately, though, Leeds cannot grumble too much about the draw, and the result is unlikely to take much shine off an encouraging start to the season around Thorp Arch.
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