Leeds boss Daniel Farke saluted his side’s “ice-cold” finishing in their 3-1 win over Swansea at Elland Road and said there was more to come.
Goals from Joel Piroe and Dan James, both against their former club, sandwiched another clinical effort from Georginio Rutter as Leeds kept pace in the Championship automatic-promotion race.
Farke’s side had fallen behind to Jamie Paterson’s excellent finish inside the opening minute, but hit back in style to make it seven wins in their last nine league matches.
Farke said: “Efficiency is a topic we always speak about, but the way we scored these three goals was outstanding.
“I can’t criticise my offensive players today too much in terms of their performance and how they created the chances and the way they scored the three goals. It was great today.
“My gut feeling is we can still improve our effectiveness, but we also had some iced-cold finishes today.”
Leeds extended their unbeaten home league run to nine games this season and Farke felt all three of his goalscorers showed excellent technique in dispatching their chances.
“When I think about the finish of Joel Piroe, also Georginio’s fantastic second goal, also Dan James’ with his weaker left foot, it was a perfect first touch at high speed and perfect finish,” the former Norwich boss added.
“We’re on the right path in many ways, but it’s also not the time to feel too comfortable and too proud of ourselves.
“The next difficult opponent already awaits on Saturday (Middlesbrough at Elland Road) and we have to make sure we are ready again and finish in the same manner, if not better.”
Swansea remain 18th in the table, seven points above the bottom three, after winning only one of their last seven league matches.
But they created problems for Leeds on the counter-attack before Rutter’s strike in first-half stoppage time quelled their fire and manager Michael Duff said the hosts’ forward line made all the difference.
Duff said: “A disappointing evening in terms of the result, but I thought the performance was really good. In the first half I thought we were excellent.
“We conceded poor goals at poor times, but we asked the players to show personality and bravery and we played through them a lot.
“Ultimately we’ve been undone by Premier League quality. The first goal, (made by Crysencio) Summerville is obviously very good.
“It’s not an excuse, but sometimes you’ve got to hold your hands up, the one-two he played and the pass for Joel. We know all about Joel.
“The pass and the touch (by Rutter) for the second goal and even the third goal, the weight of (Rutter’s) pass was perfect.”
Preston 0-3 Leicester City: Foxes seal Championship title in style
Leicester City cruised to a 3-0 win over Preston in the Championship on Monday to clinch the title with a game to spare.
Jamie Vardy was the star for the Foxes as he scored in both halves before Kasey McAteer made sure of the points with an unmarked header.
Abdul Fatawu had the chance to cap an already memorable night for the travelling fans but hit the post with his curler.
Preston slumped to a fourth consecutive defeat, while Leicester go into their final game against Blackburn Rovers with the knowledge that they will lift the trophy after the final whistle.
Data Debrief
Jamie Vardy has scored 18 goals this season (two in this game), more than any other Leicester player in the competition. He has also netted in his last three games, scoring four goals in total.
It was a dominant performance from the Foxes, who had 19 shots with 11 of those on target. At the other end, Preston only managed to test Jakub Stolarczyk once from their five attempts.
Kimmich ready to open Bayern Munich talks amid Barcelona speculation
Joshua Kimmich is ready to open talks with Bayern Munich over his future at the club amid speculation linking him with Barcelona.
The Germany international has spent nine years at the Allianz Arena, but he is due to become a free agent at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
Barca have been repeatedly linked with Kimmich in recent transfer windows and are said to retain an interest ahead of next season.
Speaking to Spanish outlet AS, the midfielder talked up Barca - as well as fierce rivals Real Madrid - but fell short of saying he is open to a move.
"I want to talk to Bayern. When I do that, I won't go out and talk to the press about it," he said.
"I'm not thinking about this. I will speak to Bayern first. But of course, Barcelona and Real Madrid are amazing clubs with an amazing history."
Kimmich has played 37 times in all competitions this season for Bayern, whose last remaining hope of silverware is in the Champions League.
Bayern will face Real Madrid over two legs for a place in the final, with the first match in that double-header taking place in Bavaria on Tuesday.
Thomas Tuchel will depart the dethroned Bundesliga champions at the end of the season, with Ralf Rangnick the favourite to succeed him.
The managerial uncertainty is not helping with regards to the Kimmich rumours, but he insists that will not be a deciding factor on his future.
"It's not the most important thing right now," he said. "I know that when you sign a contract you don't sign it with the coach.
"You sign it with the club. For me, the most important thing is the club, not just the coach.
"But it's also important to know what the coach thinks about you and the team. Other people in the club can worry about choosing the coach."
Desailly calls on LaLiga to do more to protect Vinicius Junior
Marcel Desailly has called on LaLiga to do more to protect Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior and other players who have been targeted by racist abuse.
Vinicius broke down at a press conference earlier this month as he opened up about the abuse he has received from the stands while representing Madrid.
The Brazil international is not alone in that regard, with team-mate Aurelien Tchouameni another example, and World Cup winner Desailly wants more to be done.
"Vinicius has spoken out, but it's not about him - it's about LaLiga and the people who can take action," he told Stats Perform.
"We have the power to change things, but we are not doing enough. Samuel Eto'o had the same issue before.
"Vinicius is one of those who is suffering because the administrative people in charge are not willing to hit harder than they are."
Vinicius has been a key player for LaLiga champions-elect Madrid once again this season with 13 goals and five assists in 23 outings.
Desailly regards Vinicius, who scored the winning goal in the 2022 Champions League final, as one of the finest players of his generation.
"He's a very ambitious player," Desailly said. "I think he's improved a lot because he is now clinical in assisting and finishing.
"When you look at someone like Ousmane Dembele, his stats are not as good.
"Then you look at Jadon Sancho, Bukayo Saka, another who has improved - there is potential for each of those to get close to Vinicius."
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