Leeds United are on the verge of being relegated from the Premier League after they lost 3-1 against West Ham on Sunday afternoon.
The Hammers erased an early deficit to run out comfortable winners against a Leeds side that hardly showed a tooth for the fight.
Leeds need a miracle to survive
The result means that Sam Allardyce’s side stay 18th and must now beat Tottenham Hotspur on the last game week and hope Everton slip up against Bournemouth to keep their Premier League status.
The visitors started the better of the two sides, with Patrick Bamford looking sharp, taking the game to West Ham with tireless darting runs in the final third.
Leeds should have been 1-0 up in the fourth minute when Bamford squared it off for Rodrigo Moreno at the far post, but the striker inexplicably missed from close range with the goal at his mercy.
Leeds take but cannot hold lead
The Spaniard, however, redeemed himself in the 17th minute with a sensational finish from Weston McKennie’s long-range throw-in from the left wing. The Hammers didn’t let their heads drop and settled down after conceding. Leeds went into a shell being too defensive to protect their slender advantage.
Inevitably, Declan Rice restored parity in the 31st minute after Jarrod Bowen lifted the ball for the English midfielder who squeezed his volley onto the ground before it hit the roof of the net.
Both sides had the opportunity to get the lead deep in the first half but neither could find the net heading into the tunnel.
West Ham found their mojo early in the second half with Lucas Paqueta, Bowen, and Rice pulling the strings in midfield. David Moyes’ side kept Leeds at bay with their fine passing range as they dominated possession and were rewarded for their efforts in the 72nd minute.
Danny Ings put Bowen through with a reverse pass to open up the Leeds defense and the latter finished emphatically to give the hosts a deserved 2-1 lead.
Manuel Lanzini then made it 3-1 in the fourth minute of stoppage time to seal the victory after some wonderful trickery from the ever-brilliant Paqueta.
Leeds have failed to keep a clean sheet for 12 Premier League games, and they have lost 7 of those.
Conceding goals has been their issue; they have let in 74 this season, a league-high, and it might well cost them their league status after next week’s home encounter against Tottenham.
Photo credit: IMAGO / Sportsphoto
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Courtesy : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/leeds-on-verge-of-relegation-after-defeat-to-west-ham-20230521-WST-434007.html