Nmecha late penalty help Leeds celebrate return to Premier League with win over Everton

 

Leeds United made a winning return to the Premier League (PL) as Lukas Nmecha’s 84th-minute penalty secured a 1-0 victory over Everton, who have now lost their opening game in four successive seasons.

Backed by their vociferous home support, Leeds came flying out of the blocks early on, with Joël Piroe seeing a close-range effort thwarted by Jordan Pickford and Ao Tanaka opting to head the ball across the six-yard box rather than go for goal in a promising position.

The hosts’ high-octane pressing continued to pose plenty of problems for Everton, but despite their dominance, clear-cut openings came at a premium as the Toffees’ rearguard held firm.

Having scored 95 goals en route to the Championship title last season, Daniel Farke’s men looked to up the ante before HT, with Daniel James and Wilfried Gnonto a constant threat on the wings.

However, a distinct lack of cutting edge in the final third continued to prove problematic for the Whites, as Gnonto fired another opportunity narrowly over the bar from outside the box.

The early stages of the second period followed a similar pattern to the first, with Gnonto twice going close to a breakthrough for the hosts.

Having avoided defeat on each of their previous five league visits to Elland Road, Everton turned to new signing Jack Grealish with 20 minutes remaining, as David Moyes’ side went in pursuit of a winning goal against the run of play.

The Toffees threatened when Carlos Alcaraz saw a powerful low effort smartly saved by Lucas Perri, while at the other end, Tanaka blazed wastefully over from 18 yards. 

Both sides continued to press forward with time ticking into the final 10 minutes, and Leeds were given a golden opportunity to break the deadlock when Anton Stach’s strike was blocked by the arm of James Tarkowski in the box.