Jesse Marsch and Tyler Adams have both spoken out about Luis Sinisterra and his sending off against Aston Villa as Leeds United worked hard to earn a point at Elland Road – claiming he lacked “intelligence”, and was “naive”.
Leeds, their first game in almost a month, were on the front foot in the first half. They carved out the best chances, Rodrigo arguably going closest with a left-footed drive from the edge of the area. But it all changed on 48 minutes.
Sinisterra came into the game after shining for his country during the international break, netting three goals in two games for Colombia. But on a yellow, he decided to dangle a leg in front of a free kick, just three yards away.
An instant second yellow and Leeds were down to 10 men. A combination of hard work, defensive tactics, and body-on-the-line blocks from Luke Ayling and Liam Cooper saw Leeds hold on. But Marsch and Adams agreed on Sinisterra.
Marsch: “We worked on man down tactics over the last four weeks which helped us. Maybe a better strategy will be to work on man up. Luis puts himself in jeopardy so that was not an intelligent play,” Marsch told BBC Live.
Adams: “Whenever you step in front of the ball from a free-kick, it’s going to be a yellow card. I didn’t know he was on a yellow. Obviously, it was a little bit naive but we had to move on from it,” he told Leeds’ official YouTube.
Marsch and Adams: Leeds man Sinisterra ‘naive’ to get red card
It was a rush of blood, an instinctive reaction to Villa’s free kick. Perhaps even being so close to the ball, it was a case of getting out of the way. But without doubt, Sinisterra was foolish for attempting to block the free-kick. Rightly sent off.
One to learn, for Sinisterra. It must be remembered that he is still only 23 and well below his peak, even if he has already scored six goals for club and country this season. In the end, a good point for Leeds, and a clean sheet.
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