Leeds United 1-0 Everton: Nmecha penalty the difference at Elland Road | OneFootball

Lukas Nmecha’s debut-penalty goal was enough to give Leeds United all three points on their Premier League return following two seasons in the Championship.

Despite dominating the first half at Elland Road, Daniel Farke’s side couldn’t turn possession to goals. Everton grew into the game during the second 45 minutes, but a controversial James Tarkowski hand ball resulted in a penalty which was expertly converted by the substitute and debutant Nmecha.

As it happened

For Leeds United’s first Premier League game in two years against an Everton outfit who had lost only three of their last 18 matches, as well as having been bolstered by the likes of Thierno Barry, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Jack Grealish, there was justifiable intrigue. However, if you were looking forward to a free-flowing, open contest, you’d be sorely disappointed.

What’s promising for promoted Leeds is that the entire first half was played in Everton’s defensive third. Whenever The Toffees tried to break that status quo and bypass the halfway line, they were hamstrung by either their own sloppiness or a vigorous Leeds press. David Moyes’ side finished the half with zero shots.

The downside for hosts was that, despite all the ball, they didn’t do much better in front of goal. They managed 12 attempts in the first 45 minutes, of which only one was on target. The majority of these shots came at the end of crosses from Gabriel Gudmunsson or Daniel James, which were almost invariably fizzed in with too much power to facilitate actual chances.

Besides those crosses, Farke’s men largely limited themselves to shots from distance, which did not trouble Jordan Pickford. Willy Gnonto’s curler, which flew just over the crossbar right at the end of the half, was perhaps the best example of those.

After spending the entire first half looking like rabbits in headlights, Everton did manage to compose themselves and play some football in the second half. Their first shot came in the 54th minute, when Idrissa Gana Gueye smashed an effort high and wide from the edge of the area.

It took 26 minutes of second half action for a shot on target to arrive in the form of a low Carlos Alcaraz effort fired towards the near post from just outside the six-yard box. Lucas Perri got down well to force a corner, from which Jake O’Brien headed over the crossbar.

Down the other end, Ao Tanaka smashed a half volley over the crossbar from the edge of the box before, with eight minutes left, the golden chance of the match arrived. Anton Stach lined up a shot from distance, which deflected first off Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and then again off the arm of James Tarkowski – not that it was all that outstretched, with the defender mid-fall when it happened. Still, Chris Kavanagh’s on-field decision was confirmed VAR.

Up stepped Nmecha, the substitute on debut, to slot his strike into the bottom right corner. Pickford guessed right but it mattered little, such was the precision of the strike.

Tarkowski nearly made amends with a header which flew over the bar from close quarters in the final two minutes, but Everton were unable to level proceedings. In fact, Leeds might’ve doubled their lead with Stach missing two further chances in stoppage time.

Just the one goal was the difference, though, as Leeds won their first Premier League game since 2023.

It represented only the second time Moyes has been defeated by Leeds in his last 11 games against them, and the second time a promoted side won in this opening round of fixtures following Sunderland’s victory over West Ham on Saturday.

Who knows? Maybe this season, the new boys are here to stay.

The lineups

LEE: Perri; Bogle, Rodon, Struijk, Gudmunsson; Stach, Ampadu; James, Tanaka, Gnonto; Piroe

EVE: Pickford; O’Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Garner; Gueye, Iroegbunam; Alcaraz, Ndiaye, Dewsbury-Hall; Beto