Updated at\u00a014.39 EDT<\/p>\n
![\"Will](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1792953611_426_Will_Unwin.png\")
Will Unwin<\/p>\n
Post-match reading<\/p>\n
Dropping your captain, the man that has held the team together for most of the past five years, is a bold move from a man whose job is on the line. It was very much a make-or-break decision from Michael Carrick<\/a> to leave out Bruno Fernandes against Bournemouth. It did not work, and Carrick knew the consequences if it failed and will probably pay the price for it, but he should not be alone.<\/p>\n Carrick said the decision to drop Fernandes was purely based on football reasons but criticising his manager after the desperate defeat to Como<\/a> cannot have helped. Clearly Carrick disagreed with his captain\u2019s comments on the lack of pressing<\/a> in the Champions League fixture. It was somewhat telling that Lisandro Mart\u00ednez kept his place despite pointing out<\/a> the director of football, Jason Wilcox, was a hindrance to the club the previous week.<\/p>\n Fernandes has been a long way from his best this season, with three goals and one assist in the Premier League, all in one game against Ipswich<\/a>. It would have been justifiable to give someone else an opportunity in the No 10 role, especially when the squad contains far too many of those. But then, no one at United is in form, so keeping an angry Fernandes in position may have made more sense. United have won almost half the Premier League fixtures Fernandes has started since he joined in 2020, and less than a third when he is absent.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sunderland stay bottom of the Premier League<\/a> table, but it would be foolish to read too much into a game that was played in vile conditions. Both sides tried their best and had periods of dominance. Leeds almost nicked it at the end when Sean Longstaff\u2019s shot was blocked on the line. But they had to settle for a point, which makes it five draws from eight games this season. They remain extremely tough to beat.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Full time: Sunderland 0-0 Leeds<\/p>\n And the winner is\u2026 the wind.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>90+4 min: Longstaff’s shot cleared off the line!<\/p>\n Ampadu\u2019s deep cross is driven back into the middle by Okafor. Longstaff, the former Newcastle man, hits a low shot from six yards that is somehow blocked in the six-yard box, I think by O\u2019Nien. The keeper Roefs was completely out of the game.<\/p>\n Sean Longstaff is so close to the winner. Photograph: Stu Forster\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.29 EDT<\/p>\n 90+3 min \u2026 which Talbi curls straight out of play on the far side.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 90+2 min Trafford slices a clearance out for a Sunderland<\/a> throw-in on the left wing. O\u2019Nien\u2019s long throw leads to a corner for Sunderland\u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 90+1 min Six minutes of added time. Okafor has a shot blocked by Sadiki and Leeds win another corner.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 90 min Longstaff curls a low shot from 22 yards that is pushed round the post by the sprawling Roefs. That\u2019s a good save at full stretch because it was a precise effort from Longstaff.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 89 min: Leeds substitution Sean Longstaff, a popular man in these parts, comes on for Ao Tanaka.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 86 min Trafford stays down after a collision with his teammate Muharemovic. He was holding his left leg but now he\u2019s being treated for what looks like cramp.<\/p>\n Update: he\u2019s fine.<\/p>\n He\u2019s ok, folks. Photograph: Zach Forster\/Sports Press Photo\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.16 EDT<\/p>\n 85 min: Leeds substitution Dominic Calvert-Lewin gives way to Lukas Nmecha.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 83 min O\u2019Nien\u2019s long throw is caught by the wind and swirls straight out of play for a Leeds goalkick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 80 min Talbi seizes on a loose touch from Justin (I think), charges into the area and hits a shot that is well blocked by Bijol.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 79 min: Sunderland<\/a> substitution Habib Diarra and Chemsdine Talbi on, Enzo Le Fee and Nilson Angulo off. Angulo produced some really nice touches.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 76 min Now Leeds are having a spell of pressure. Roefs spills Tanaka\u2019s shot on the turn and dives at the feet of Calvert-Lewin, who goes flying. O\u2019Nien was lunging towards the ball as well. No penalty, and no intervention from VAR. I\u2019d like to see that again as I think Calvert-Lewin got the first touch; whether he was fouled is another matter.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 74 min Stach finds Bogle, whose brilliant low cross is hooked away by Sadiki, facing his own goal in the six-yard box. Okafor was waiting behind him and would probably have scored. That\u2019s such good defending.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.02 EDT<\/p>\n 72 min Sadiki\u2019s corner is headed behind by Gudmundsson. A really awkward inswinger is cleared to Angulo, whose stinging shot is blocked by one of a posse of Leeds defenders.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 68 min Xhaka\u2019s long free-kick is volleyed wide from eight yards by Alderete. A bad miss, though he was offside so it wouldn\u2019t have counted.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 67 min Bogle is booked for a clumsy high challenge on Reinildo. The home fans wanted more but it won\u2019t be upgraded by VAR.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 66 min: Double substitution for Leeds Anton Stach and Noah Okafor replace Harry Wilson and Brenden Aaronson.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.53 EDT<\/p>\n 65 min: Sunderland<\/a> substitution Timur Tuterov comes on for Brian Brobbey, who has run himself into the ground.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 62 min: Good save! Trafford flies to his right to push away a deflected shot from the edge of the D. Sunderland<\/a> are now on top.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 60 min Rigg, found by Xhaka, slithers into the area from the right and has a left-foot shot blocked. Leeds break and Bogle\u2019s shot is also blocked.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 58 min Sunderland come to life through Angulo, who curls a first-time shot towards the far corner from 22 yards. It bounces up awkwardly and is pushed away by the diving Trafford. Decent save.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 57 min Bogle\u2019s cutback is taken off the toes of Tanaka by Le Fee, a disciplined and vital piece of defending.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 56 min Wilson\u2019s deep corner from the right is headed towards goal by Muharemovic and held comfortably by Roefs. That\u2019s Leeds\u2019 first shot on target in the game.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 55 min Bogle\u2019s cross is deflected towards Aaronson, who tries an overhead kick that is half cleared in the six-yard box. All Leeds at the moment.<\/p>\n Ethan Ampadu fends off Nilson Angulo of Sunderland. Photograph: Richard Lee\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.45 EDT<\/p>\n 54 min Leeds have made a strong start to the second half, as they did the first. That said, if I had a farm, I\u2019d be putting it on a 0-0.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 53 min Alderete makes an important interception, sliding in at the near post to cut out Bogle\u2019s low cross.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 52 min: Sunderland<\/a> substitution Omar Alderete replaces Nordi Mukiele, who has apparently gone down the tunnel.<\/p>\n Brian Brobbey may also have a problem \u2013 his movement looks a bit laboured.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 51 min Gudmundsson runs onto a defensive header from O\u2019Nien and smashes a hopeful shot over the bar with his right foot.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 50 min Mukiele wants to continue but may have been advised against it by the physios. There was a brief shot on the TV coverage of what looked like a robust back-and-forth on the touchline.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 49 min Mukiele receives treatment and then walks to the touchline looking a bit groggy.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.37 EDT<\/p>\n 47 min Mukiele lies face down after accidentally taking an arm in the face from his teammate O\u2019Nien. The referee has to stop play for a potential head injury, but the away fans aren\u2019t happy because Leeds had the ball just outside the Sunderland<\/a> area.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.37 EDT<\/p>\n 46 min Sunderland begin the second half by deliberately kicking for touch. It works for PSG, so why not.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n More half-time reading<\/p>\n Our own Tim de Lisle is excellent as always on the latest crisis at Old Trafford<\/a>.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Half-time reading<\/p>\n When football\u2019s dignitaries assemble on Monday at the London Palladium for the Ballon d\u2019Or ceremony it will be a far cry from the first awards 70 years ago. That was held in the slightly less glamorous surroundings of Blackpool town hall, where Stanley Matthews was presented with the prize by Gabriel Hanot, the visionary editor of L\u2019\u00c9quipe who came up with the idea of crowning the world\u2019s best player every year.<\/p>\n A specially commissioned china plate was also handed over by the town\u2019s mayor before the 41-year-old Matthews, who was famously teetotal, gave a short speech. \u201cHe might have had a double carrot juice that day,\u201d says his son, Stanley Matthews Jr, who will attend this year\u2019s awards with his sister, Jean, and her two daughters. \u201cThere was no ceremony. \u2018Here\u2019s your Ballon d\u2019Or, well done\u2019, sort of thing. But obviously it\u2019s grown over the years, and now it\u2019s a huge event. We\u2019re very excited.\u201d<\/p>\n The switch of venue to England from its usual home in Paris is a mark of respect to the man who became the first active player to receive a knighthood in 1965, a few months before retiring at the age of 50. It also provides an opportunity to recall an astonishing career that began with his local side Stoke in 1932 and made the \u201cWizard of Dribble\u201d the most famous player on the planet.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.26 EDT<\/p>\n \u201cMost teams have one player whose absence makes them worse,\u201d writes K\u00e1ri Tulinius. \u201cUsually it\u2019s because, like with Enciso at Ipswich, it\u2019s their best player. Without Brobbey, Sunderland<\/a> are much diminished, but he\u2019s not obviously in a different class. However, with his diligent harrying and intelligent movement, he creates space for his teammates. Even in a poor game he\u2019s a joy to watch.\u201d<\/p>\n His hold-up play reminds me of Mark Hughes at Manchester United. You could throw any old filth at him and he would somehow control it, fight off four defenders and play the right pass.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.26 EDT<\/p>\n Half time: Sunderland 0-0 Leeds<\/p>\n That was hard work for the fans, never mind the players. A gale-force wind made it tricky to put more than a few passes together. The closest we came to a goal was when Brian Brobbey forced a short backpass and was denied by James Trafford.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 45 min There will be one minute of additional wind.<\/p>\n