Leeds United got back to winning ways to ease some of the pressure on Paul Heckingbottom’s shoulders.
Tom Pearce and Paudie O’Connor both took to Twitter after Leeds got back to winning ways with a victory over Championship strugglers Barnsley at Elland Road.
It has been a hugely disappointing spell for the Whites with Paul Heckingbottom going into the clash with the Tykes having overseen just two wins in his tenure so far. With the head coach struggling to win the fans over, defeat at home against his old side who are battling for their lives would have made life even more difficult for the 40-year-old.
And while it was not a brilliant performance by any means, Leeds did bag the three points with Pearce playing a crucial role in the victory. The young left-back broke the deadlock after a bright run culminated with a drilled finish into the bottom corner from outside the box.
Unfortunately for O’Connor, he played a similarly crucial role in the game’s next goal. A Barnsley cross was not dealt with by Pontus Jansson and ended up hitting the centre-back and going past Bailey Peacock-Farrell to level the score.
But Leeds would bag the win with Kemar Roofe’s great work allowing Gjanni Alioski to slide in and tap the ball home from close range five minutes after the break.
It may not have been the perfect display from the home side, but it was another day where the fans were left praising the trio of youngsters in the back five who showed that they may not be far off being ready to be first-team regulars when the team are thriving.
Peacock-Farrell made another cluster of fine saves, Pearce looked bright again and O’Connor continues to stake a claim to remain a first-choice when Heckingbottom has all of his centre-backs to pick from.
And after the game, Pearce took to social media to comment on scoring his first goal for the senior side, while O’Connor also tweeted to praise the left-back who he was playing alongside regularly in the under-23s just a couple of months ago…
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