Leeds boss Daniel Farke hailed his side’s mentality to overcome the hostile atmosphere of The Den and return home with three points as they beat Millwall 3-0.
Striker Joel Piroe scored once in each half to put Leeds in control before Georginio Rutter added a third 10 minutes from time to seal a memorable visit to the capital.
Farke’s side weathered an early storm from the hosts before Piroe opened the scoring after 15 minutes and the German lauded the way his side stood strong in trying circumstances at times.
“I’m proud of my guys today because I’ve played here several times at The Den, I know it’s an unbelievably tough place to come,” he said. ”You have to be on it and it was a pretty complex performance.
“There are periods of the game where you have to show some steel and reliance. You have to be there and show these qualities because you can’t win all these long balls and all these long throw ins and sometimes they’ll have a corner kick.
“It is so difficult, you have to dig in and give your life in these moments and also to stay cool and mentally strong and wait for the moments where you can let your qualities shine and that’s what we did today.
“To return back from such a tough place with a clean sheet to the dressing room and to score three goals is pretty amazing.”
A comprehensive defeat at home continued Millwall’s slow start to the season, with the Lions taking just seven points from their opening six matches.
But manager Gary Rowett insisted the scoreline did not accurately reflect the balance of the contest.
“It felt a little bit harsh,” he said. “You concede three goals, and the opposition don’t concede then of course a 3-0 scoreline is what it is.
“It doesn’t look a fair reflection of the effort the players put in.
“I thought we got up against them, I thought we pressed really well, I thought we took a gamble in playing a little bit higher.
“We won a lot of good balls in and around the Leeds half and got into some good areas, forced lots of corners and (had) moments around the box without really creating obvious chances. But I don’t think Leeds did either.
“We go from those periods of pressure where we’re doing a lot of things well and a lot of things right to concede a poor goal.
“To be 1-0 down felt a little unjust and maybe gave Leeds a tiny bit of a lift, but after that we continued to put them under pressure, continued some of those moments.”
Fiorentina 2-2 Napoli: Kvaratskhelia keeps visitors' slim European hopes alive
Dethroned Italian champions Napoli's hopes of playing European football next season are hanging by a thread after they played out a 2-2 draw at Fiorentina in Serie A on Friday.
Napoli took the lead in the eighth minute through defender Amir Rrahmani, who nodded home a corner by Matteo Politano.
Cristiano Biraghi levelled for Fiorentina in the 40th minute from a free-kick, before M'Bala Nzola put the hosts in front two minutes later when he fired a shot into the bottom corner of the net.
Napoli's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia responded with another stunning free-kick early in the second half to rescue a point for his team.
Eighth-placed Fiorentina, on 54 points and with a game in hand, are five points behind Lazio in seventh.
They can still earn a Europa League spot either by leapfrogging the Rome side or by winning the Europa Conference League final in which they face Greece's Olympiakos on May 29.
Ninth-placed Napoli, on 52 points, still have a slim chance of making the Europa Conference League playoffs.
Data Debrief
Fiorentina left-back Biraghi has now scored six goals from direct free-kicks since the start of 2021-22, which is behind only James Ward-Prowse (seven) - now of West Ham and formerly of Southampton - as the most across Europe's top five leagues in that period.
Kvaratskhelia also levelled via a direct free-kick, making this the first Serie A match in which both teams scored via that route since Fiorentina against Lazio in April 2018 (Jordan Veretout and Luis Alberto in that case).
Southampton 3-1 West Brom (3-1 agg): Saints set up play-off final with Leeds United
Southampton saw off West Brom 3-1 at St Mary's on Friday to set up a Championship play-off final showdown with Leeds United.
Leeds thumped Norwich City 4-0 at Elland Road 24 hours earlier to book their place at Wembley, where Southampton now await on May 26.
The first leg between the Saints and West Brom finished goalless - just like the other semi-final - but the home side's quality told in the end.
Russell Martin's side dominated the first-half possession, with David Brooks going closest to scoring with a shot that hit the outside of the post.
Southampton made the breakthrough via a powerful Will Smallbone finish four minutes into the second half after Gray Diangana lost possession.
Darnell Furlong had a shot helped over by Alex McCarthy, while David Brooks - who assisted the opener - had a strong penalty appeal rejected.
Southampton remained in control, though, and Adam Armstrong scored a second with a shot through Furlong's legs and past Alex Palmer.
Armstrong's second goal arrived from the penalty spot in the 86th minute after Tom Fellows fouled Ryan Manning in the box, rendering Cedric Kipre's late header a mere consolation.
Marc Skinner signs Manchester United Women contract extension
Marc Skinner has signed a one-year contract extension as Manchester United Women head coach with the option of a further 12 months.
The 41-year-old guided United to their first major silverware last weekend with victory over Tottenham in the Women's FA Cup final.
United are fifth in the Women's Super League with one game to go - a massive drop on last term's runners-up finish - but Skinner will stay on.
"It's an honour to extend my stay at Manchester United," Skinner, who was appointed in 2021, told United's official website after the news was confirmed on Friday.
"I've always felt at home here, with our excellent players, staff, and fans.
"Being able to secure the team's first major trophy at Wembley was a real career highlight for me and another sign of our continued growth, on and off the field."
United conclude their campaign on Saturday against Chelsea, who lead Manchester City on goal difference entering the final day.
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