Leeds United delivered this strong verdict on Sunderland draw and 'unbelievably unlucky' late goal

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
Sunderland and Leeds United played out an entertaining 2-2 draw on Friday night

Leeds United boss Daniel Farke said the draw with Sunderland was the proudest he has been of his team all season.

Farke's side were seconds away from a 2-1 win when Ilan Meslier spilled Alan Browne's tame effort to rescue a point for the hosts, an error he said he was at a loss to explain.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Nevertheless, Farke said he was thrilled with his players and how they had performed at the end of a testing week in which their two first choice central midfielders suffered serious injuries.

"In 30 years in professional football I've lost and won many points in the last seconds, something like this I've not experienced," he said.

"The game was over, the goalkeeper takes the ball into his hands, arms, time is over, referee blows the whistle and you've won with a perfect away performance. To lose two points, we have not lost the game, but to lose those points is heartbreaking, horrendous, so so disappointing for our lads. I feel for them, they've done more or less everything right. I feel for our supporters who were excellent.

“We had a really difficult week, a third game in six days, awful long-term injuries to key players.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"With the last guys who were there we had to play this game against an excellent side who were just with wins at home, no one else has scored a goal here. To lose two points in this way is heartbreaking. It's tough to take, it feels a bit like a loss. An away draw is a really good result.

“As much as it hurts myself, the proudest day of the season, how they have delivered today under such hard circumstances,” he added.

"What can I say? Perhaps the only thing missing - you're down after eight minutes, the whole stadium was buzzing, we were dominating at half-time, second half we were rock solid against the ball, I don't think there was much in terms of expected goals - but we missed perhaps to score the third to bury the game. Normally the game was already won and this then happens. I have no explanation, perhaps written in the stars.

“I'm so proud how we reacted. I just have compliments for my lads, I think we were excellent. They don't need me to accuse or speak about the last moment, just need an arm around the shoulder because for them it is also heartbreaking.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On Meslier's late error, Farke said: "Pascal [Struijk] came over and said listen boss I've never seen something like this, the ball bounced and jumped in the different direction. I can't tell you if that was the case, I was not on the pitch, I have not watched the footage. Pascal is probably in the best position to say this. If it was like this it was unbelievably unlucky. I would struggle to find a different explanation. You don't have to talk to Illan, he's the saddest player in the dressing room, more or less in tears. You just give him a hug and leave him alone, speak to him in a few days about this.”

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

News you can trust since 1873
Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice