Stuart Dallas admits that Leeds United struggled to deal with the ‘lightning’ pace of Jamie Vardy and Harvey Barnes during Monday’s 4-1 home defeat to Leicester City, while speaking to the club’s official website.
Probably for the first time in Marcelo Bielsa’s tenure, the Whites were blown away at Elland Road – for the first half hour at least.
A ruthless, counter-attacking Leicester side did exactly what Brendan Rodgers said they would do before the game; they exploited the cavernous gaps behind Leeds’ high back-line.
Defensive mix-ups gifted goals to Barnes and Youri Tielemans inside 21 minutes.
While Dallas himself pulled one back during a much improved second-half showing, the Foxes sunk their teeth in with a pair of late finishes from Jamie Vardy and Tielemans again.
“It’s always tough when you get beat,” said Dallas. “We gave ourselves an uphill task in the first half.
“It took us about 30 minutes to get into the game and at that point we were two-nil down and it is difficult then, especially playing a good side like Leicester.
“In the second half we got ourselves back into it and we controlled the game then, but they showed quality going forwards and hit us on the counter again.
“We knew what we were coming up against and we knew we were going to have the majority of possession, but you saw their quality on the counter with the likes of Jamie Vardy and Harvey Barnes, lightning fast players.”
It is the third time in recent weeks that Rodgers has swapped his usual possession-based principles for a more pragmatic style. And, after thrashing Manchester City 5-2 and stunning Arsenal at the Emirates, Leicester’s low block and fast breaks worked a treat once again in West Yorkshire.
With Wesley Fofana throwing his body on the line at one end and Vardy and Barnes going through the gears at the other, Leicester are perfectly set up to play thrilling, counter-attacking football.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
