Leeds produced arguably their performance of the Premier League season so far to inflict a rare defeat on Chelsea and perhaps alleviate some of the pressure engulfing Daniel Farke.
A run of four wins in succession had left speculation rife that Farke was entering a pivotal period if he wanted to keep his job at Elland Road, having guided the Whites to promotion last season. He and his team responded accordingly with a wonderful display filled with energy, aggression and quality to move out of the relegation zone.
Leeds were outstanding in the opening 45 minutes and deservedly led at the break through goals for Jaka Bijol and Ao Tanaka. Chelsea improved slightly after half-time but despite Pedro Neto making it 2-1, a horrendous defensive mix-up led to Dominic Calvert-Lewin sealing the win to ensure the visitors dropped to fourth, nine points off the leaders Arsenal.
With all the talk swirling around Farke’s future, you suspected he and Leeds needed a fast start to get the home crowd behind them. The manager opted to switch to a back three for the first time this season and those tweaks proved fruitful early on, as Leeds suffocated Chelsea inside the opening minutes before taking a deserved lead.
