Micah Richards threatens to walk off set on Match of the Day as Leeds United win 1-0 v Southampton
Gary Lineker has joked about how Junior Firpo replicated Micah Richard’s positional changes in his career as Leeds United in their 1-0 win over Southampton on Saturday.
Firpo, 26, was the unlikely hero for Leeds at Elland Road as he scored his first goal for the club to secure a massive 1-0 win over Southampton.
The left-back’s goal helped move the Whites out of the Premier League’s relegation zone in Javi Gracia’s first match in charge and speaking on Match of the Day (26 February, 53m26s), Richards was full of praise for the former Barcelona man after his match-winning performance.
Lineker said: “Started as a forward, went slowly back, ended up as a full-back. Ring any bells, Micah?”
Richards, laughing, replied: “Shall I go home now?”
Lineker then said: “Funnily enough he referred to the manager asking for more crosses and that’s exactly what you’ve picked up on.”
Ex-Manchester City ace Richards said: “Yes, I just think Leeds always have the energy, they always have the desire. But I thought today (Saturday) they used the width really, really well.”
What a result
We couldn’t have asked for things to pan out better than they did on Saturday.
Sure, West Ham’s 4-0 win over Nottingham Forest wasn’t ideal but our 1-0 win over Southampton in Gracia’s first match, coupled with defeats for Bournemouth, Ecertib and Leicester was a huge boost for the Whites.
Firpo must be on cloud nine too.
The Dominican Republic left-back has been widely derided during his time at Elland Road – and rightly so.
For someone who arrived for the fee he did from Barcelona, you’d expect him to be doing a lot better than he has done in his first couple of seasons at Elland Road.
Injuries have plagued Firpo’s time at Leeds and you cannot blame him for that.
But when he has been fit, he’s been shocking defensively and offered next to nothing going forward.
It seems, however, that Gracia could get the best out of Firpo, especially in the attack.
In other Leeds United news, the captain of a Championship club has been texting Gracia to offer his assistance.
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