The two most influential living coaches in world football’s modern era ended the day as equals, but that only tells part of the story from this intoxicating contest between Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United and Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. The master, rather than the apprentice, will be the happier of the two after Rodrigo’s scuffed equaliser from a corner earned Bielsa and his players a deserved point, cancelling out Raheem Sterling’s opener.
It was a goal that fell far below the aesthetic standards which these two coaches usually set, with it bundled in after Ederson’s failure to contend with a routine corner, but it was also atypical of a game in which both sides enjoyed spells of daring yet intricate, aggressive yet elegant, bloody and brilliant attacking play in torrential conditions at Elland Road.
City started particularly well, only to fade against the energy, industry and sheer intensity of their newly-promoted opponents.
That should worry Guardiola. City have always had a tendency to drop off in short, sharp spells under his management and usually concede multiple goals in quick succession. That did not happen this time, but those moments where the energy appears to drain out of them are becoming more common.
It is still early in the season, of course, but four points from three games can hardly be described as a good start.
Bielsa’s players spent the opening stages chasing shadows, pulled this way and that by City’s superior movement. Shots rained down on Illan Meslier’s goal, with Kevin De Bruyne catching the Leeds goalkeeper out on a free-kick as early as the third minute. Meslier’s blushes were spared by the post. Ferran Torres saw an effort cleared off the line and Sterling, ominously, was repeatedly appearing in acres of space. Leeds could not cope.
The intensity on the pitch was matched on the touchline and in the stands. Victor Orta, Leeds’ director of football, was partial to a few impassioned rantings and ravings at referee Mike Dean or the conduct of City’s players.
This caught the attention of City’s substitutes and backroom staff, sitting a few rows in front of Orta, who turned around every now and again to raise a cocked eyebrow. Some of the Spanish speakers even began to argue back.
And perhaps the only time that Orta fell silent during the entire first half was immediately after Sterling’s goal.
It was the type which is becoming more and more familiar from the England international - cutting inside from the left, feinting a shot to wrong-foot a defender then curling a finish inside the far post. It is becoming his trademark but that made it no easier for Bielsa’s defence to stop. Liam Cooper, their captain, was left particularly red-faced.
An onslaught appeared inevitable but did not arrive. Having out-shot their hosts by eleven to two, City would test Meslier just once more before the break. Instead, Leeds finally came to terms with the task at hand and began to create brilliantly incisive combinations of their own. Patrick Bamford finished one flowing counter-attack with a shot into the side netting but by far the best chance fell to Luke Ayling, on the cusp of half time.
With only a few days remaining before the close of the transfer window, City are still in the market for a new left-back and - though Benjamin Mendy was a threat going forward, with a key hand in Sterling’s goal - this showed why. A lapse in concentration by left-back on the edge of his own penalty area allowed Ayling in and only a strong stop by Ederson prevented Leeds from going in level.
If only his handling had been as firm at the hour mark. Leeds maintained their momentum once both sides re-emerged, with new signing Rodrigo particularly lively. The substitute first forced Ederson to parry his shot from a narrow angle against the crossbar, then was on hand to poke into an unguarded net after the City goalkeeper failed to clear the resulting corner, punching down into the ground rather than up and away.
City were all at sea. The control, the composure, the certainty of their superiority that had defined the early stages had entirely disappeared.
Once level, Guardiola’s side rediscovered some of their former attacking brio but still created little of note. A penalty shout for Sterling against Cooper went unheeded by Dean and VAR. Other than that, Leeds just about hung on.
Guardiola will not be happy with how his side have started the campaign but once the final whistle blew on this thrilling game, and as he embraced his old friend on the touchline, even he was smiling.
