REPORT: FIRST LEAGUE DEFEAT FOR UNITED

REPORT: FIRST LEAGUE DEFEAT FOR UNITED

Ipswich are 1-0 winners at Elland Road...

UNITED 0, IPSWICH 1 (Smith 32)

United team: Silvestri, Berardi, Cooper, Bamba, Taylor, Murphy, Cook, Adeyemi (Mowatt 69), Dallas (Byram 59), Antenucci, Wood. Subs: Turnbull, Wootton, Bellusci, Phillips, Doukara.

Ipswich team: Gerken, Chambers, Smith, Berra, Knudsen, Skuse (Coke 76), Douglas, Maitland-Niles (Pitman 84), Fraser (Parr 76), Murphy, McGoldrick. Subs: Bialkowski, Malarczyk, Tabb, Toure.

Referee: J Adcock

Booked: Bamba, Cook, Byram (United), Parr (Ipswich)

Att: 21,312 (520 Ipswich)

The midweek visit of Ipswich Town saw United head coach Uwe Rosler make two changes from the weekend’s 1-1 draw with Brentford, replacing Alex Mowatt and Sam Byram with Luke Murphy and Mirco Antenucci after the pair had made positive impacts as second-half substitutes against the Bees.

The opening 10 minutes passed without a sight of goal for either side, but United had started fairly brightly as Gaetano Berard’s low cross was scrambled clear with Chris Wood lurking inside the area, while Lewis Cook had an early penalty appeal waved away following a surging run into the box.

Despite a fast-paced start to proceedings, both goalkeepers remained untested as the game reached the 20-minute mark, with the hosts just seeing more of the ball and mainly inside the Ipswich half.

The first effort on goal eventually came midway through the first half and it came through Saturday’s goalscorer, Antenucci. He was invited forward after picking up the ball on the edge of the area but his low strike was deflected into the arms of Ipswich ‘keeper Dean Gerken.

Leeds were starting to apply the pressure and Berardi tried his luck from range after a corner had been cleared into his path, only for his strike to sail high and wide.

But the deadlock was broken at the opposite end on 32 minutes as defender Tommy Smith headed home from close range after United had failed to clear their lines from a corner.

David McGoldrick then blasted over from a tight angle under close watch from United captain Sol Bamba. Leeds looked to respond and both Tom Adeyemi and Antenucci had shots blocked as a frustrating first half drew to a close.

David McGoldrick then blasted over from a tight angle under close watch from United captain Sol Bamba. Leeds looked to respond and both Tom Adeyemi and Antenucci had shots blocked as a frustrating first half drew to a close.

Both sides re-emerged unchanged for the second half and Ipswich made a lively start, with Marco Silvestri getting down sharply to hold Daryl Murphy’s drilled cross from the left. The United ‘keeper then clutched onto Ashley Maitland-Niles’ volley after a clearance had fallen kindly into the path of the Arsenal loanee.

Silvestri was again called upon to push away Ryan Fraser’s deflected effort as Town pressed for a second.

As the game approached the hour mark, Rosler was prompted into his first change of the evening, introducing Byram in place of Dallas on the right wing.

Leeds looked to step things up a gear and soon threatened through Cook, gliding through the Ipswich midfield and exchanging passes with Wood before firing over from just outside the area.

Ipswich were enjoying the better of the chances, though, and both Fraser and Murphy threatened as Leeds’ frustrations grew. Mowatt replaced Adeyemi in midfield with 20 minutes remaining on the clock, hoping to repeat his goalscoring heroics in this fixture earlier in the year.

Cook was the player looking United’s biggest threat with his speed on the break, and the young midfielder twice fired wide from outside the area as the home crowd urged the team forward in the closing 10 minutes.

Referee James Adcock had to make a big call in the final five minutes, opting to book Byram for simulation after the 21-year-old had surged into the Ipswich area before going down under pressure.

Leeds pushed for a late equaliser as the game entered six minutes of stoppage time, but Ipswich held firm to condemn United to a first league defeat of the season.

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