Sky Sports pundit: Middlesbrough should have had penalty v Leeds
Sky Sports pundit Sue Smith has claimed that Middlesbrough should have been awarded a penalty in their 1-0 defeat to Leeds United on Wednesday night.
Mateusz Klich’s first-half goal at the Riverside Stadium was enough to secure all three points for the Whites, who earned their third 1-0 victory in a row on Teesside.
However ex-Leeds Women player Smith, who covered the game on Sky Sports News, believes that Boro were unlucky to have not been awarded a spot-kick late in the second half.
“On Wednesday, I covered Middlesbrough’s game at home to Leeds,” Smith said on the Yorkshire Post website. “The Whites were the better team and deserved their 1-0 win but I was impressed by Boro’s character, work-rate and togetherness. In the moments that mattered, though, luck went against them.
“They should have had a penalty when Stuart Dallas handled Lewis Wing’s free-kick and Boro hit the bar through Marcus Tavernier. If you are flying as a team, that probably bounces off the woodwork and goes in.”
It would have been a bit unfair to penalise Dallas for that handball because although it did hit him, it was from quite a close distance.
Jonathan Woodgate claimed after the game that it should have been a penalty for his side – but he was always bound to say that, wasn’t he?
Overall, Leeds were by far the better team on Wednesday night and hopefully they can carry that momentum into their clash against Hull at the KCOM on Saturday.
Hull’s form has been just as bad as Middlesbrough’s and if recent results are anything to go by, you would back the Whites to earn yet another 1-0 victory on Humberside.
In other Leeds United news, Leeds are back in the hunt to sign this attacker they almost signed last summer.