Leeds United suffered their first away defeat of the season at Blackburn Rovers on Sunday, a result that manager Marcelo Bielsa described as a 'bad moment' for the club. The 2-1 loss at Ewood Park leaves Leeds in a familiar position, having taken 23 points from 13 games, exactly the same tally as at this stage last season under former boss Thomas Christiansen.
Blackburn, who had prepared a specific game plan over the international break, took the lead after just two minutes through Danny Graham. Leeds equalised through Mateusz Klich's finish from the best move of the match, but Darragh Lenihan's second-half header secured the win for the hosts.
Bielsa, recently lauded by Pep Guardiola as the best coach in the world, acknowledged his side's struggles. 'Our goal was to avoid going through a negative cycle. Now we have to find solutions as soon as possible,' he said. The defeat extends Leeds' run to one win in four matches, raising fears of another autumn slump.
Blackburn manager Tony Mowbray praised his team's execution, saying, 'If you're submissive against Leeds, they play the whole game in your half. In the first half particularly we did to them what they do to other teams.' Leeds midfielder Kalvin Phillips admitted, 'It's very disappointing for us. We weren't good enough.'
