Leeds were held to a 1-1 draw as Adam Armstrong scored twice, Will Smallbone got his first goal for the club, and Pascal Struijk scored for Southampton.
“Jaidon Anthony crosses to Georginio Rutter who cushions it for Piroe on the penalty spot,” Donnohue wrote for the Yorkshire Evening Post regarding a Leeds chance in the 78th minute.
“His effort is tame and straight at Gavin Bazunu. Dutch forward hasn’t been involved enough today. That was his moment.”
Major shock
Considering how both newly-promoted clubs have opened the new season in the Championship, this result is a huge shock for Russell Martin and the Saints.
The manager was under a lot of pressure going into the game, but he has responded in the best possible way to his critics.
It was a comfortable win for him against Daniel Farke’s Leeds, who had all the confidence in the world when they went to St Mary’s.
Striker Armstrong scored twice for the hosts, before being replaced late on to the delight of the home fans.
Leeds simply couldn’t get going, with neither Piroe nor his Leeds team-mate Rutter finding the net.
This is a huge blow to the West Yorkshire side, who simply can’t afford to keep losing like this if they want to have any chance of staying in the Premier League.
In a related development:
Embarrassment stopped Daniel Farke wielding Leeds United’s axe after dire Southampton start
Daniel Farke didn’t change his Leeds United team at the break against Southampton because he didn’t want to ‘humiliate’ the players he might hook at the interval. The Whites had been running ragged and were 3-0 down at the break at St Mary’s, but Farke felt it would be ‘unwise’ to pick individuals for the ‘bottom of a bus’ at the interval.
With Leeds halfway through what had quickly become their worst half-season in years, Farke chose to give his team a chance to get things back on track. The German had plenty of players on the bench to change things up, but he wasn’t willing to make them the sacrificial lambs he might have.
“I got the feeling I didn’t have to do a bit more with the attitude or with the mentality [of the players],” he said. “It was more like I want to give the players a chance to show a reaction because if you go back into the dressing room at half-time, you are 3-0 down, it’s always difficult.
“I didn’t want to show there is, with two or three substitutions, these two or three players were crucial for being back (behind) that much. I didn’t want to embarrass them.
“I want to give the whole team the chance to show a reaction. That’s what they did because I didn’t have the feeling after the first half there are one or two players just to blame.
“It was more like, as a team, we could have been a bit more sharper and a bit more aware and the lads showed a good reaction. Sadly, it was not enough to turn the game completely.”
There will be a lot of pressure on Farke to change things up in the middle of the week when Queens Park Rangers travel to Elland Road to face on Wednesday night.
The only players who are currently out of contract are Junior Firpo and Wilfried Gnonta, who are on loan with the club until the end of the season.
Djed Spence is also a long-term absentee.
