Published 11:53 IST, January 11th 2021
Crawley Town's 2nd-half comeback sees Leeds United exit FA Cup, fans mock Marcelo Bielsa
Crawley Town FC produced a spectacle in the second half to knock out Leeds United from the third round of the FA Cup, with fans questioning Marcelo Bielsa.
- SportFit
- 3 min read
After winning the Championship last term and the subsequent Premier League return, hopes were high on Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds United. The team did display some exhilarating display in the initial matchdays but went on to stumble, now languishing at the 12th spot in the Premier League. The crisis appears to deepen further after the Whites were knocked out by Crawley Town FC in the third round of the FA Cup.
Also Read | FA Cup results & highlights: Carlos Vinicius nets hat-trick, Man City ride on Silva brace
Crawley Town vs Leeds highlights: Hosts stun Premier League outfit
Leeds United were up against fourth-tier side Crawley Town in the third round of the FA Cup. And the Premier League outfit were left shocked and humiliated, to say the least, by their opponents. Following an interesting first half, albeit no goals, Crawley Town hammered the Championship winners in the second half.
Nick Tasaourla bagged the opener for the Crawley-based club in the 50th minute, followed by a second goal from Ashley Nadesan three minutes later. Jordan Tunnicliffe further sealed the victory for the home side, extending the lead by three goals with his brilliant effort in the 70th minute.
Also Read | Leeds United slammed by netizens, social media team labelled 'sexist' for mocking pundit
FA Cup highlights: Fans mock Marcelo Bielsa's men
Although Leeds United maintained possession for a major part of the game, they could not produce magnificent efforts in the final third. On the other hand, Crawley Town attempted six shots on target as averse to two shots from Leeds United. The shocking FA Cup results have left fans surprised, most of whom mocked Bielsa.
Interestingly, Crawley Town had reached the third round of the FA Cup for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign. Back then, they were knocked out by then-Premier League outfit Reading. Meanwhile, Leeds United have equalled their worst run stretch dating back between 2003 and 2007, when they were knocked out from the third round in each of the four campaigns.
Bielsa disappointed at humiliating FA Cup results
Bielsa was seemingly frustrated at the setback, expressing his disappointment in the post-match interaction with the media. He said, "We couldn’t unbalance them when we attacked. We had the ball for a long period of time but we couldn’t do much with it. In the first half we played better than the opponent and the game was played how we wanted it to be played, even if we didn’t create much danger. In the second half, the game was played how the opponents wanted to play. They did create danger to deserve the goals that they scored."
Image courtesy: Leeds United website
Updated 11:53 IST, January 11th 2021