At Wembley, the White team lost.
Final of the Sky Bet Championship Play-Offs
Leeds United 0
Southampton 1 (24′ for Armstrong)
Leeds: Rodon, Grey, Rutter, Gnonto (James 66′), Gruev; Meslier (GK); Firpo (Joseph 83′); Ampadu (C); Piroe; Kamara (Roberts 74′); Summerville (Anthony 74′). Gelhardt, Cooper, Shackleton, Byram, and Darlow (GK) were not used as substitutes.
Southampton: Aribo, Armstrong, Smallbone, Harwood-Bellis, Fraser (Adams 70′), Bednarek, Brooks (Edozie 35′ (Manning 83′)), McCarthy (GK), Walker-Peters, Downes, Stephens (C), and Aribo. Charles, Sulemana, Rothwell, Bree, Manning, Lumley (GK), and Stewart were not used as substitutes.
Table of Contents
Honourable John Brooks, Summerville, Ampadu (Leeds) is reserved. Bednarek, Fraser, Adams, Downes, Aribo, and Harwood-Bellis (Southampton), Location: Wembley Stadion, 85,862 people were present.
At Wembley, Leeds United’s season came to an abrupt end as Southampton defeated the team 1-0 in the Sky Bet Championship Play-Off Final.
Daniel Farke’s team finally lost in the capital, despite incredible support from the Leeds end, which was all white. Adam Armstrong’s goal in the first half was enough to divide the two teams.
When Joe Rodon showed off his skill to create space for Georginio Rutter inside the Southampton half, the Whites had their first opportunity at goal.
The French striker was brought down on the turn, and Archie Grey collected the loose balls, sprinting to the boundary and missing the far post with a shot that Alex McCarthy was attempting to protect.
Georginio then played a part as United advanced again, combining with Willy Gnonto in a cutting one-two before the Italian exploded, compelling McCarthy to make a save low to his left.
Despite Leeds’ early pressure, Armstrong’s run of the left was allowing the Saints to pose a threat in the break.
Rodon was in a good position to intercept the forward’s low cross, which was intended for Will Smallbone, and captain Ethan Ampadu got there to stop Armstrong’s subsequent attempt.
Just before the fifteenth minute, Leeds’ custodian Illan Meslier was called upon to make a brilliant diving save that kept Smallbone’s hard-hit free kick out of harm’s way.
Midway through the first half, Armstrong gave Saints the lead by running onto Smallbone’s ball behind the Leeds defence and firing low past Meslier towards the far corner.
Following the goal, there were few opportunities for either side during a cagey period of play. However, Meslier did a fantastic job of getting down to block Armstrong’s next shot, and Rodon’s excellent positioning allowed the opponent to hack away prior to a black shirt was able to take advantage of the situation.
Just before the half, Rodon would again produce a vital block to thwart Armstrong, stopping the striker’s left-footed attempt from the perimeter of the box. Referee John Brooks subsequently ended the first forty-five minutes.
Halftime: Southampton 1, Leeds United 0.
After the break, neither team changed, and the Whites got off to a fast start. Rodon went on a rampaging run into the Saints’ penalty area, where he connected with Gnonto before Southampton cleared thanks to some tenacious defence.
Summerville recovered the loose ball that resulted and attempted to shoot for the top corner, but the Dutch winger shot painfully wide of McCarthy’s far post.
Georginio was taken to the ground by United, giving them a fantastic opportunity to cross on the left. Summerville instead tried to catch McCarthy off guard at his near post, but Jack Stephens’ stooping header saved him.
Dan James replaced Gnonto in a first-half substitution just after the hour mark. The winger was quickly involved, dropping a dangerous cross that looked for Joel Piroe, which Kyle Walker-Peters cleared clear. Southampton then countered quickly.
The player who would seize possession of the ball along the left would be Samuel Edozie. He would dash into the area and then scoop the ball over the crossbar in an attempt to double his team’s advantage.
With five minutes remaining, James came dangerously close to scoring a spectacular equaliser. He connected with Mateo Joseph, a replacement, but his hard drive sailed over the post and out of danger.
As Leeds put all that at the Saints defence deep into final minute, McCarthy made a superb finger-tip save and parried wonderfully to deny James’ low shot from the outside of the box.
The game ended with a strong defensive display by Southampton when Brooks blew the final whistle, despite United’s best attempts.
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