Brilliant Saiz, Poor Cibicki – The Best and The Worst Rated Leeds Players From The 1-0 Loss To Birmingham

Final Score: Birmingham City 1-0 Leeds United

Leeds United’s six-game unbeaten run came to an end when they were defeated 1-0 by bottom side Birmingham City at the St. Andrew’s, on Saturday. 

A Jacques Maghoma goal, 7 minutes from full-time, was enough for the Blues to grab three points against Thomas Christiansen’s visiting side, who had struggled to get going on the day for most of the game. The Whites continue to occupy 5th place in the EFL Championship table, 13 points off leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers and 6 points below Derby County who occupy the second automatic promotion spot.

Here’s how the Leeds players fared in what was a quite disappointing outing at the St. Andrew’s. 

Leeds United Player Ratings

Felix Wiedwald – 6/10

Did not have a whole lot to do in the first period. Made a good stop to deny David Davis, but his save to stop Jota’s shot fell to Maghoma for the goal. 

Luke Ayling – 5/10

Given a difficult time defensively by the lively Jeremie Boga in the first period. Improved after the break though but offered little in terms of attacking output.  

Pontus Jansson – 7/10

Stood rock solid at the back under some intense pressure from the Blues in the first period, making several important clearances.  

Liam Cooper – 7/10

Was Leeds’ best defender on the day, making two goal-saving stops to deny Sam Gallagher and was a composed presence throughout. Booked. 

Gaetano Berardi – 6/10

Making his 100th appearance for the Whites, the left-back put in a disciplined display in defence but could have shown more adventure when he had the ball.  

Kalvin Phillips – 5/10

The game just passed him by in the opening stages, with Birmingham putting a lot of pressure on the visitors. Did make some decent runs forward but wasn’t solid enough.  

Conor Shaughnessy – 5/10

Handed a start in the midfield by the manager, the youngster struggled to make a case for himself to be played often in the position. Looked shaky and gave away possession easily quite a few times. 

Pawel Cibicki – 4/10

Ineffective. Having shown signs of form in the past few games, the Swede had little impact whatsoever at the St. Andrew’s and was subbed off even before the hour mark. 

Pablo Hernandez – 6/10

Looked the most likely to make things happen for the Yorkshire based outfit, operating in the No.10 role, but his influence reduced when he was shunted out wide after the break. Struck the crossbar late on.

Gjanni Alioski – 5/10

Struggled to get going. Offered little threat going forward and did not help Berardi defensively either.  

Kemar Roofe – 5.5/10

Isolated and deprived of service for most parts in the first-half. Showed good energy and drive to run at the defenders, but couldn’t make the decisive impact. Booked. 

Substitutes

Samu Saiz – 7/10

Replaced Cibicki in the second-half and showed what Leeds were missing without him on the pitch. Added a spark to the Whites’ play in the attack but couldn’t help his side snatch a point.  

Mateusz Klich – 5/10

On for Phillips with twenty minutes left to play. No impact.  

Pierre-Michel Lasogga – N/A

Replaced Alioski soon after the Birmingham goal. Hardly got a touch.