Because Daniel Farke’s Leeds United also made a mistake after Sunderland, Sheffield United is the winner of the English week in the Championship. Tim Walter’s worries, on the other hand, are growing.
Leeds United missed out on getting closer to leaders AFC Sunderland in the Championship. Daniel Farke’s team suffered a 1-0 defeat at new fifth-placed Millwall FC on Wednesday evening, but still made an impression. “They’ll be champions if they keep playing like this,” predicted Millwall manager Neil Harris after the lucky win, which Japhet Tanganga secured with his 40th-minute goal.
“Sometimes football is the most unfair sport in the world,” Farke complained to the BBC, reflecting on his side’s second defeat in 14 games. ”In tennis, basketball or handball, if you dominate, the better team wins, but in football, often a single goal decides the game.”
That’s why Leeds, who only just missed out on returning to the Premier League in the play-off final against Southampton in the previous season, are now only third because Sheffield United’s 2-1 win at Bristol City on Tuesday was their third win in a row. At the same time, last year’s first division team is now just two points behind Sunderland, who, although they remained unbeaten for the seventh time in a row on Wednesday at basement boys Preston North End, had to live with their second 0-0 draw in four days.
Walters’ team without a win again – Wednesday breathes a sigh of relief before the derby
Meanwhile, Hull City is sliding deeper and deeper into the crisis. The Tigers’ first three wins of the season, which came between September 20 and October 1 after a poor start to the campaign, remain their only victories so far. On Tuesday, the team of head coach Tim Walter lost 1-0 at Oxford United despite once again enjoying a large advantage in possession. The defeat, their sixth game without a win, sees them slide down to 18th place and behind Sheffield Wednesday. The team that almost got relegated last season, coached by Hansi Flick’s long-time assistant Danny Röhl, made up for the 6-2 defeat to Watford with a commanding 2-0 win over Norwich, their first clean sheet since match day one.
“We had to stop making individual mistakes, and we managed to do that today,” said a delighted Röhl after a performance “with heart and passion” – which comes just in time for Sunday’s derby against second-placed Sheffield United (1:30 p.m.).