Leeds United continued their strong run of form on Saturday night with a convincing 4–1 win over Crystal Palace at Elland Road, extending their unbeaten streak in the Premier League to four matches.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin once again took centre stage, scoring twice to maintain his impressive scoring run. The striker has now found the net six times in his last four league outings for the Whites. Further goals after the interval from captain Ethan Ampadu and Anton Stach underlined a commanding performance from Daniel Farke’s side, who are starting to look increasingly settled at this level.
After a difficult spell that saw them lose six of seven games, Leeds have turned things around with eight points from their last four fixtures. The change in mood around Elland Road has been striking, with belief and momentum clearly returning.
Despite the comfortable result, frustration remained over a refereeing decision that went against the home side.
David Prutton criticises penalty call
Former Leeds midfielder David Prutton, who was on commentary duty for the match, was highly critical of referee Thomas Bramall over a first half incident. Leeds went into the break two goals ahead, but Prutton felt they should have been awarded a penalty earlier.
Brenden Aaronson went down inside the area after a challenge from Tyrick Mitchell, and Prutton was adamant that the Palace defender fouled the American before making any contact with the ball. Although VAR checked the incident, officials ruled there was no clear and obvious error, a verdict that left Prutton puzzled.
Speaking during commentary, he insisted that Mitchell clearly made contact with the player before the ball and questioned how anyone could review the footage and not award a spot kick.
Farke’s history with Bramall
Thomas Bramall is already a contentious figure at Leeds, with Farke having raised concerns earlier in the season. The Whites believed they were wrongly denied a penalty when Pascal Struijk went down in the box during a narrow home defeat to Tottenham earlier in the campaign.
While Leeds went on to secure the points on Saturday, the manager is unlikely to forget another decision that appeared to go against his side. How Farke responds the next time Bramall is assigned to a Leeds match remains to be seen.