Wilfried Gnonto terrible, Joe Rodon on fire – Leeds player ratings v Oxford
Joe Rodon was the star man for Leeds United as they earned a 1-0 win against Oxford on Friday, while Wilfried Gnonto left much to be desired.
Leeds are now within touching distance of automatic promotion to the Premier League after a victory at Kassam Stadium on 18 April saw them return to the top of the Championship table.
Cameron Brannagan forced a great save from Karl Darlow early on, but the Whites quickly exerted their dominance over Gary Rowett’s side.
Manor Solomon eventually put Leeds in front just after the 30-minute mark, getting on the end of a Jayden Bogle cross.
Here, MOT Leeds News rates each player out of 10.
Karl Darlow – 5
Made a great start to the game, denying Cameron Brannagan’s low curling effort with a fine save. Had little to do afterwards
Bogle excels v Oxford
Jayden Bogle – 8
It was Bogle’s wonderful low cross that put the ball on a plate for Solomon to finish. Was yet another assured performance from the right-back, who was on the scoresheet against Preston.
Joe Rodon – 9 (MOTM)
Was the orchestrator of Leeds’ opener, playing a sublime throughball to Bogle to set Solomon up for a tap-in. Rodon was one of the reasons why Darlow had a quiet game, as he kept the Oxford attackers at bay, winning almost each of his aerial duels.
Ethan Ampadu – 7
The captain produced an assured performance alongside Rodon in defence.
Junior Firpo – 6
Troubled Oxford with his – often overlapping – runs as always.
Ao Tanaka – 5
Provided enough protection in midfield and even contributed in attack. Came close to scoring at the end, but was denied by the woodwork.
Ilia Gruev underwhelming for Leeds
Ilia Gruev – 4
Had his name taken just after the one-hour mark. Wasn’t an impressive performance by any means.
Wilfried Gnonto (Off for Dan James 76′) – 4
Was another underwhelming performance from the Italian.
Brenden Aaronson (Off for Josuha Guilalvogui 90+5′) – 5
Should have done better to convert his chance early on.
Manor Solomon (Off for Isaac Schmidt 87′) – 7
Put Leeds in front with a tap-in, but deserves credit for getting the finish right.
| Minutes | Passes | Chances Created | Successful Dribbles | Accurate Crosses | Duels Won |
| 87′ | 32/25 (91%) | 1 | 0/2 | 2/3 (67%) | 0/5 |
Joel Piroe (Off for Patrick Bamford 76′)- 6
Started off well, finding pockets of space to cause headaches to the Oxford defence. However, his involvement dwindled as the game went on.
Substitutes
Patrick Bamford (On for Piroe 76′) – 5
Dan James (On for Gnonto 76′) – 5
Isaac Schmidt (On for Solomon 87′) – NA
Josuha Guilavogui (On for Aaronson 90+5′) – NA