Leeds player ratings v Portsmouth – 2/10 outfielder horrendous
Leeds United suffered a 1-0 defeat at Fratton Park with Colby Bishop’s solo goal enough for Portsmouth to secure a shock victory.
Leeds’ 17-game unbeaten run was brought to a shocking end as heroics from Nicolas Schmid prevented the visitors from scoring at Fratton Park.
In the 61st mintue, Leeds went behind via Bishop’s goal as Meslier made a mess of the situation and Pompey were leading against the league leaders.
Despite Leeds’ numerous attempts to equalise, they failed to get past the Portsmouth keeper.
MOT Leeds News rates the performance of each Leeds United player.
Leeds United’s 17-game unbeaten run ends at Portsmouth
Illan Meslier – 3
Meslier had very little to do in the first half as Leeds had majority of the possession but failed to break through the Portsmouth backline. The Frenchman was extremely poor in his positioning for Bishop’s goal as his horrendous keeping left Leeds with no chance. The 25-year-old did pull-off an impressive save later, pushing the ball over the bar from Andre Dozzell’s shot.
Jayden Bogle – 4
Bogle had seen his shot go wide in the early stages of the game, after which, Bogle was hardly to be seen for the visitors. His lack of involvement coupled with Leeds’ desperation to find an equaliser saw him get hooked for the final 10 minutes of the game.
Joe Rodon – 6
Rodon was positionally poor and his inability to track Bishop played a part in Leeds conceding the goal.
Pascal Struijk – 5
Struijk and Rodon had their work cut out in the second-half as Portsmouth took the lead and were clearly pushing for another goal. With the visitors focusing on attack, Struijk had to be composed at the back and prevent another goal. The Dutchman found it difficult to neutralise Bishop throughout the game.
Junior Firpo – 6
Firpo’s excellent run found himself through on goal in the 76th minute but his shot was brilliantly saved by Schmid. In the very next minute, the Dominican’s strong header hit the crossbar as Leeds remained goalless.
| Match stats | Portsmouth | Leeds United |
| Possession | 43% | 57% |
| Shots | 13 | 13 |
| Shots on target | 3 | 4 |
| Chances created | 1 | 3 |
Ao Tanaka – 5
In the 58th minute, Tanaka lost the ball in a dangerous position which gave Portsmouth a chance to capitalise. Tanaka made Leeds tick in the first-half but he was unable to make those incisive passes and contribute to the attack. Once Farke’s men were behind, Tanaka was hooked for Joe Rothwell. He was dispossessed thrice before being substituted.
Ilia Gruev – 5
Ilia Gruev was far more involved than his midfield partner Tanaka. The Bulgarian failed to take the game forward for Leeds as Portsmouth did well to cut down his impact on Leeds’ buildup. He was taken off in the 79th minute for Wilfried Gnonto.
Dan James – 5
Dan James and his teammates thought they were done wrong by not being awarded a penalty in the first half for Matt Ritchie’s tackle on the Welshman. James was electric on the right and crafted an excellent through ball to Solomon in the second-half but the Whites failed to score.
Leeds United striker Piroe missed easy chances
Brenden Aaronson – 5
Aaronson struggled to create anything valuable in the attack as the tightly knit Portsmouth defence did an excellent job in containing the American. With Aaronson being anonymous for majority of the game, he was brought off in the 68th minute for Mateo Joseph.
Manor Solomon – 5
Manor Solomon was a constant threat from the left-hand side. The Israel international did brilliantly to invite Schmid and get past the Austrian keeper and cutback the ball in Piroe’s path but the Dutchman skied his shot. Despite being one of the better players for Leeds this afternoon, Solomon was replaced by Largie Ramazani as the Whites scrambled to search for a goal.
Joel Piroe – 2
Piroe came very close to scoring in the first-half but his attempt was saved by Portsmouth keeper Schmid. The Dutchman squandered an easy goalscoring opportunity in the 49th minute, shooting the ball over the crossbar in front of an open goal from a Solomon cutback. Piroe missed one sitter which cost Leeds heavily as that goal would have allowed Leeds to take at least one point from the match.
Substitutions
Largie Ramazani – 4
Replacing Solomon, Ramazani failed to create the impact that was expected from him.
Joe Rothwell – 5
The 30-year-old could not provide the midfield solidity that was expected of him. Although Leeds were able to string attacks, they were unable to get past Schmid.
Mateo Joseph – 4
Joseph came on as an extra striker but was unable to conjure up anything positive for the visitors.
Wilfried Gnonto – N/A
Sam Byram – N/A
Had a last minute header saved from Schmid.