Daniel Farke tried to put a brave face on it after the game, but really this defeat to a makeshift Sheffield Wednesday side was beyond embarrassing.
Farke made nine changes to the starting line-up, involving pretty much every fit member of the squad who didn’t start on Saturday. There were also a couple of positional changes, with Harrison at left back (presumably due to Justin being signed too late to be eligible) and Piroe in a slightly deeper role behind Nmecha.
The Wednesday side included only two players over 21, as they had to protect their threadbare squad from injury as far as possible in their desperate struggle for survival. And the fans boycott restricted the gate to 7,801, despite our contribution. The Wednesday supporters trust did ask us to come out in sympathy, but not until after the tickets had already gone on sale.
And with the size of our away support and an allocation of only 3,700, for every Leeds fan who could be persuaded to join the boycott there would have been another to snap up the ticket they would have had. We needn’t apologise for going to support our team, but it was embarrassing that we had a mocking chant in favour of the owner who is running the Owls into the ground.
Right from the start we dominated possession against a home side content to protect their goal, but once again we struggled to break down a ‘low block’. All too reminiscent of too many Championship away games of the last few years. Our performance looked really disjointed, which is what you can get with a lot of changes, especially when a lot of them are new signings.
We had team that looks reasonable on paper, but in fact were a collection of players who hadn’t played together before and didn’t know each other’s game. So nobody was making forward runs and nobody trying to pick someone out with a pass, so our build-up was mostly slow and predictable.
Our best moment of the first half came when Okafor’s cross was just too high for Nmecha and came through to Aaronson beyond the far post. But the American had to stretch to get a touch on the ball, and though his shot was on target it lacked the power to trouble Horvarth. And just before the break there was an anxious moment at the other end when Lowe curled a free kick just past the post.
Farke must have had a word at half-time, because we showed a bit more urgency at the start of the second. We started to get a series of free kicks in decent positions, with the Wednesday defence looking ever more stretched and resorting to fouls to stop us, perhaps safe in the knowledge that we haven’t had a decent free kick taker in our squad for years.
Gruev sent the first wide, his splendid free kick against Norwich a fading memory. But the second was better, as for once Piroe didn’t blast it straight into the wall, but sent it just wide. Then Aaronson had a go, but he did manage to find the wall. That was one of the American’s final contributions as he was replaced by Gnonto, as Farke decided we might need a bit more ooomph up front, with things not going to plan.
But the other change made at the same time saw Piroe coming off to give Calvert-Lewin his Leeds debut. And to say the former Everton man didn’t have a great night would be a massive understatement, as he looked rusty enough to be in urgent need of a few hundred litres of WD40. But before we get to his vital misses, there was a calamity at the other end on 63 minutes.
Darlow got down to save Thornton’s shot, but could only palm the ball out to Thornton by the goal line. And somehow our keeper failed to catch the cross, and as bounced goalwards off his leg it spun over the line before Byram was able to get back and hack it clear. Perhaps a lack of concentration after having little to do all game, but still a shocking error by our reserve keeper.
It was time to get some first choice players on to try to salvage the game, and Bogle and Stach came on for Byram and Gruev. And on 81 minutes it seemed to have worked. Bogle’s initial run into the area was blocked, but it came to Gnonto, who turned and played the ball back to Bogle with a clever pass. This time Bogle was free to put the ball through the keeper’s legs from a narrow angle, and we were back in the game.
Huge sighs of relief all round, but it gradually dawned on us that it was still only 1-1 and we still needed to find a winner. That should have come when a free kick came through to Calvert-Lewin, but he had to stretch for it a little and could only send the ball just past the post. A few minutes later we broke downfield and Harrison played the ball to Gnonto on the left, but as his cross arrived at the feet of Calvert-Lewin, Horvath spread himself to make another fine save.
The final change saw James on for Okafor to run at a tiring defence, but Wednesday countered by sending on their captain Barry Bannan to shore things up. We had one final chance as Bogle’s cross came in and James flicked it on, but Horvath got a vital touch to ensure that it didn’t fall nicely for Calvert-Lewin, and again our new striker sent the ball wide.
Five minutes injury time were announced and six actually played, but that wasn’t enough for us. The momentum was with us and if there had been extra time I’m sure we’d have gone on to win it, but the rules have been changed and the tie went straight to penalties. And the least said about the shootout the better!
As the players prepared I thought the Wednesday manager was far more animated, with Farke doing little to fire his players up for what lay ahead. Of course he was disappointed with the way things had gone, but once you’re in a shootout you need to plan how you’re going to win it. Piroe was first up and his penalty was well struck but not well placed, and as long as Horvath went the right way he was always going to save it.
Then Calvert-Lewin’s awful night reached it’s inevitable end. He never looked confident and sent the ball well over the bar. Cue the memes on social media of the ball having to be fished out of the river Don. With Wednesday scoring all their first three penalties it was match point when Longstaff stepped up, so it was all over when Horvath made yet another save.
Much as this competition wasn’t a priority this season, we certainly didn’t want the embarrassment of losing to a club in Wednesday’s position. But Daniel Farke had to get his excuses ready to face the media. "A Premier League side is the favourite and the Championship side is more or less the underdog. It was just this type of football game where we had more than 85% possession”.
"Somehow they managed to be one time in our box, and somehow they have scored. Yes, we have simply missed too many chances. They're all professional football players and it is not like we played an under-21 side. We were the favourite today, there is no doubt about it, but this happens quite often in a cup game."
And on the subject of Dominic Calvert-Lewin: "Three chances he had in the game. I am happy he has the chances as he shows his instinct again. [To get in the right position in the first place]. For him it is like a little pre-season. He desperately needed minutes today to build up his fitness."
I suppose that like last Saturday, this will be another game that ‘won’t define’ our season, but after Saturday’s mauling we could have done with a win to give us a little bit of a boost in morale. You wouldn’t say that any of the fringe players staked a claim for a place in the starting line-up against Newcastle, but can the rest of them turn things round in that game to get our season back on track?