Aaronson awful again, Dan James MOTM – Leeds player ratings v Middlesbrough
Brenden Aaronson disappointed again as Dan James fired Leeds United to a 1-0 win against Middlesbrough on Tuesday.
Leeds were determined to put the disappointment of their recent run of form behind them, as they started the game at the Riverside Stadium on 8 April on the front foot.
It took them just two minutes to take the lead against Middlesbrough, with Dan James getting on the end of a low cross from Manor Solomon, much to Steve Sidwell’s delight.
Ao Tanaka thought he had doubled the lead for the Whites half an hour later, only for the goal to be wrongly disallowed for offside.
That would not be the only time Leeds were subjected to a wrong refereeing decision as Patrick Bamford also had a goal ruled out despite being clearly onside.
On another day it could have been a 3-0 win for Leeds, but there is no denying that the Whites’ performance was still unconvincing for the most part.
Here, MOT Leeds News rates each player out of 10.
Karl Darlow – 5
Pulled off a fine save to deny Delano Burgzorg after the one-hour mark.
Jayden Bogle – 5
Combined well with James when the Welshman was on the pitch, but question marks around his defending remain.
Junior Firpo and Joe Rodon standout
Joe Rodon – 6
One of Leeds’ better performers on a night when a lot of the players left much to be desired.
Ethan Ampadu – 5
Helped Leeds keep a clean sheet alongside Rodon. There is a case to be made about pushing him forward towards the end of the game and bringing Max Wober on for defensive stability.
Junior Firpo (Off for Sam Byram 68′) – 6
Was susceptible to getting caught out on occasion, but was easily one of Leeds’ better players at Riverside.
| Middlesbrough | Stat | Leeds |
| 17 | Shots | 5 |
| 2 | Shots on target | 3 |
| 54% | Possession | 46% |
| 556 | Passes | 496 |
| 86% | Pass accuracy | 84% |
Ao Tanaka – 5
Was wrongly disallowed a goal after he thought he had doubled Leeds’ lead in the 34th minute. It was not a great performance by any means, but he wasn’t the worst player on the pitch either.
Ilia Gruev – 4
The midfielder did not prove the defensive assurance that Leeds would have liked and was also guilty of putting his teammates under pressure with his poor passes.
Dan James (Off for Isaac Schmidt 73′) – 7 MOTM
Put Leeds in a strong position with an early opener and was easily the best player of the game. The sight of him being down and then be forced off the pitch was certainly concerning.
Joel Piroe goes missing again
Brenden Aaronson (Off for Josuha Guilavogui 90+1′) – 3
Another awful performance from Aaronson. There is no explanation for why he played 90 minutes.
Manor Solomon (Off for Wilfried Gnonto 68′) – 5
Was the orchestrator of James’ opener, playing a low, firm cross for the Welshman to bundle into the back of the net, but his output from set-pieces still leave a lot to be desired.
Joel Piroe (Off for Patrick Bamford 73′) – 4
Was denied by an excellent save from Mark Travers early on in the second half, but was rather non-existent otherwise. Stayed on the pitch too long.
Substitutes
Wilfried Gnonto (On for Solomon 68′) – 5
Sam Byram (On for Firpo 68′) – 5
Isaac Schmidt (On for James 73‘) – 5
Patrick Bamford (On for Piroe 73′) – 6
He surely has to start next time out.
Josuha Guilavogui (On for Aaronson 90+1′) – NA