Crysencio Summerville told Pascal Struijk to stop Patrick Bamford taking Leeds United penalty v Stoke
Crysencio Summerville told Pascal Struijk to stop Patrick Bamford from taking Leeds United’s penalty against Stoke City, according to Phil Hay.
Writing in The Athletic (26 October), Hay claimed that Summerville urged the captain to “pull rank”, but Bamford decided to take the penalty, which he missed.
Bamford’s subpar penalty record sits at five goals in 10 attempts from the spot, while Stoke went on to win the game 1-0 through an 80th-minute own-goal from Struijk.
Nightmare
If any Leeds player needed a little confidence boost, it was Bamford. Now, it could be in tatters. Injuries have force him to miss so much game time, while a few cameo appearances from the bench hasn’t been enough to get him kicking again.
When Stoke’s Ben Pearson took the Englishman out in the box at 0-0, Bamford was quick to claim the spot kick. However, his poor penalty record meant that perhaps one of his teammates should have taken the ball.
If Leeds were comfortably winning, or even winning 1-0, then perhaps the former Chelsea man could have justified it. If he at least got it on target, then fans and players alike may have been more forgiving, but he blazed it over the cross bar and, unfortunately, played a big role in the Whites’ defeat.
In Bamford’s defence, Daniel Farke’s team should have done the business in the first half and shouldn’t have had to rely on a late penalty. The likes of Joel Piroe and Georginio Rutter looked lost for portions of the game against the then-22nd-place Potters.
Bamford will need to bounce back from this if he wants to remain in contention, but perhaps Summerville should have made a better case for a different taker.
In other Leeds United news, a BBC pundit has shared a “ridiculous” admission amid the club’s promotion hopes this season.