Sky Sports pundit rages at Joe Rothwell incident in Leeds win v Norwich
Adam Virgo blasted Joe Rothwell after the Leeds United midfielder dived to win a penalty in the 2-0 win against Norwich City.
Daniel Farke rolled the dice with his team selection on Wednesday (22 January) as he selected Manor Solomon to start at Elland Road despite his fitness concerns, and was rewarded with a goal and an assist from the forward.
Gary Rowett blasted Norwich goalkeeper Angus Gunn for his first-half performance, but Rothwell came on the receiving end of a Virgo rant live on Sky Sports+ (22 January, 9:13pm) after the midfielder blatantly dived to win a penalty.
He said: “You don’t like seeing that to be honest, especially his reaction afterwards, he’s frustrated that he didn’t get it.”
Joe Rothwell makes stupid error for Leeds United
The 30-year-old has let himself down at Elland Road after an unwarranted dive against Norwich and rightfully received a yellow card.
He glided past three opposition defenders as he entered the penalty area in a fantastic showcase of skill and had absolutely no reason to go down with no visible contact.
The incident occurred after 70 minutes, long after Solomon and Dan James had essentially ended the game with a goal in each half.
It appears the pressure of Ethan Ampadu’s first-team return is weighing heavily on the Englishman – his recent form in West Yorkshire has left a lot to be desired, and once Pascal Struijk returns from injury, Farke is likely to favour Tanaka over Rothwell.
Nevertheless, Leeds have reclaimed top spot in the Championship with a fairly routine victory against Norwich, and now the attention can turn to a top-of-the-table clash against Burnley.
The Whites’ form on the road is night and day compared to their results at Elland Road, and as the top four sides begin to pull away from the rest, competition at the top is set to be fierce from here on out.
Furthermore, Burnley has just completed a demolition job against Plymouth Argyle – Farke must find a solution for his away form woes before the daunting trip to Turf Moor on Monday (27 January).
In other Leeds United news, a Whites ace “should be banned” after what happened against Norwich.
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