Joel Piroe blasted by ‘lost for words’ Don Goodman in awful Leeds United defeat at QPR
Don Goodman was left “lost for words” at how poor Joel Piroe’s decision-making was as an abject Leeds United were thrashed at QPR.
The Sky Sports pundit reacted live on the broadcaster’s coverage of the 4-0 defeat at Loftus Road on 26 April to express his dismay as the Whites forward lined up a long-range free kick and blasted it high and wide to waste a rare opportunity.
Daniel Farke’s side were already 3-0 down at the time of the wayward 79th-minute attempt but the shot was symptomatic of a terrible performance in West London, which confirmed Leicester City’s promotion to the Premier League and may have consigned Leeds to the play offs.
Goodman said (9.39pm): “I’m lost for words almost really. That’s just a poor choice, a poor decision, and he was allowed to make that decision.”
Patrick Bamford replacement struggles for dismal Leeds United
It is actually difficult to single out Piroe on a night where virtually nobody was up to standard, except arguably Junior Firpo down the left, but he certainly had a night to forget.
The Dutchman came in for the injured Patrick Bamford in what felt like a risk after he drew a blank in defeat to Blackburn, but it probably didn’t matter who had been given the nod considering how poor the team performance was, although few would have anticipated the outcome being so much worse in the capital.
A couple of early attempts suggested he might pose a threat but that was as good as it got for the former Swansea man, and his late hit-and-hope free kick attempt suggested he’d given up.
There looked like being no chance of a comeback either way, and Farke’s decision to withdraw both Georginio Rutter, who wasted the best Leeds United chance after the break, and Crycensio Summerville, who went closest with a volley in the first half, moments earlier suggested the German had also written this result off.
Ilia Gruev had a nightmare in midfield, Illan Meslier was again poor in goal, while even the likes of Joe Rodon were sloppy and the attacking stars got next to nothing going.
Ipswich now have two games in hand on the Whites and sit just a point behind in third, with just one automatic promotion place remaining, so after a stunning season it looks like it will only be good enough for a play off spot, and Leeds will probably now face that challenge in arguably their worst form of the entire campaign.
In other Leeds United news, Phil Hay has shared the Whites’ FFP position after consecutive £30m-plus losses were revealed.
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