Championship leaders Middlesbrough had the chance to pull four clear of the chasing pack as they welcomed Leeds United in Saturday's lunchtime kickoff in the Championship.
Despite dominating basically the entire match, Boro ended up losing to an early Alex Mowatt strike, opening the door for those below going into the afternoon games.
Read how one of the biggest steals of the season unfolded in our minute-by-minute updates below.
Morning all! The only early kickoff in England's top two divisions takes place at the Riverside today as top-of-the-table Boro welcome an in-form Leeds. Let's get straight to the starting lineups...
BORO XI: Mejias; Nsue, Kalas, Gibson, Friend; Adomah, Leadbitter, Clayton, Reach; Vossen, Kike
Subs: Ripley, Whitehead, Tomlin, Bamford, Omeruo, Husband, Forshaw
Subs: Ripley, Whitehead, Tomlin, Bamford, Omeruo, Husband, Forshaw
Changes aplenty from Aitor Karanka then as he freshens up the side that drew 1-1 at Birmingham City on Wednesday night. This is Boro's third game in six days, so that's understandable. The man who scored the equaliser at St Andrew's three days ago, Patrick Bamford, drops to the bench while there is also a change in goal because Dimitrios Konstantopoulos was sent off on Wednesday. Tomas Mejias comes in.
LEEDS XI: Silvestri; Wootton, Bamba, Bellusci, C.Taylor; Byram, Austin, Murphy, Cook, Mowatt; Morison
Subs: S.Taylor, Berardi, Cooper, Sloth, Sharp, Cani, Antenucci
Subs: S.Taylor, Berardi, Cooper, Sloth, Sharp, Cani, Antenucci
Neil Redfearn names an unchanged XI after last weekend's important 1-0 victory over Millwall at Elland Road, with Liam Cooper returning to the bench.
REFEREE WATCH! The man in charge today is a name most of us will recognise - Andre Marriner, who takes charge of his first Championship game since October.
© Getty Images
© Getty Images
It's hard to gauge exactly how Boro will view kicking off earlier than their promotion rivals this afternoon. On one hand, it's a chance to extend the gap to four and put the pressure on those below, while on the other any slip-up will give those below an extra incentive, if that's possible, to win later today.
Although Boro will, and rightly should be, heavy favourites, Leeds have a good recent record at the Riverside. The Whites have lost only one of their last 12 visits to Teesside in league competition (W4 D7).
A lovely day in the North-East!
Don't forget to send us your photos using #lufcawaydays as we build-up to kick-off at Middlesbrough! #lufc pic.twitter.com/6PcVcDgVQ9 — Leeds United FC (@LUFC) February 21, 2015
So, Leeds have a good record at the Riverside, but they are also in great form at the moment, winning four of their last five league games. If they make it five in six, they will do the double over Boro after claiming a late 1-0 win at Elland Road in the reverse on the second weekend of the season.
PREDICTION TIME! Right then, just 10 minutes until the off. I think this is a really tough game to call, with Boro playing their third game in six days and Leeds having not played for a week. I think it could be quite tight, with two good defences going up against each other. With Boro being the home side in front of an expectant Riverside support, I'm just going to give them the edge - 1-0 to the hosts.
Here's a stat which backs up my prediction - Middlesbrough have been drawing at half time and winning at full time in their last four home matches in Championship. So, I'll be even more precise and say 0-0 at half time, 1-0 at full time.
Click here to check out our defence statistics for the Championship. As you can see, Boro have by far the tightest defence with just 21 goals conceded in 31 games. At home, only Ipswich Town have allowed as few goals in front of their own fans (nine).
However, Leeds also have a solid backline, not conceding more than once in a game since the turn of the year. Redfearn has done an impressive job in 2015.
Redfearn tells Sky Sports News that Boro are top for a reason, but adds that they have coped well against the big teams this season. He's absolutely right, with Leeds having beat Bournemouth and Derby County as well as Boro earlier in the season. Not sure if any other side in the league can say they've beaten the current top three this season.
Okey doke, kickoff is moments away now with the two sets of players out on the pitch. Boro are in their red and white home colours, while Leeds don their all-navy away kit.
KICKOFF! Boro get us underway at a sun-soaked Riverside.
Austin surges forward from midfield for Leeds, but he doesn't really get his head up and is eventually crowded out by three red shirts.
GOAL! BORO 0-1 LEEDS (MOWATT)
Well, my 1-0 prediction lasted less than three minutes! It's Leeds who draw first blood as Mowatt drills a low shot which takes a slight deflection before nestling in the corner. The chance came from Mejias's lazy throw, with Cook intercepting the ball, driving to the right and then cutting back for his teammate to shoot.
CHANCE! Big, big chance for Boro to equalise as they work a clever free kick that's cut back for Vossen, who has a free shot at goal from 15 yards. He makes a mess of it though with a complete swing-and-miss. The Leeds fans, who are belting out "Marching on Together!", loved that.
It's certainly a big game for Mejias today with Konstantopoulos suspended. Watching the replay of the goal, you can put a bit of the blame on Leadbitter for not coming to the ball, but it was a risky throw into the middle of the pitch. Mejias is a good shot-stopper, though, as he showed in the 2-0 FA Cup defeat at Arsenal last Sunday.
Leeds almost break Boro down on the counter-attack as Cook looks to find Morison with a ball over the top. He just didn't quite get the angle right and it ran through to Mejias.
Bamba with an excellent blocking tackle in the area to deny Vossen. The former has started the game brilliantly.
SAVE! First shot on target for the home side as Kike beats Bellusci far too easily before drilling at a nice height for Silvestri to palm away.
Only Ipswich have more home points than Boro this season and they haven't lost at home since the opening month of the season back in August. At the moment, Leeds look fairly comfortable.
Leeds aren't willing to commit too many bodies forward when they do get the ball, but after scoring that early goal it's more about consolidating and just calming the pace of the game down.
Mowatt's early goal was the first time in three games at the Riverside that Leeds have scored. In the six games prior to the two scoreless matches, they had netted 13 times. An up-and-down ground for the Whites of late.
SAVE! Nsue's low cross to the near post is met neatly on the volley by Vossen, whose first-time effort is turned away by Silvestri. How can Vossen make a lovely connection like that but completely miskick that earlier corner?!
OFF THE LINE! Boro really knocking on the door now! Kike curls the ball out to reach and his low cutback is poked goalwards by Vossen. Silvestri takes the sting out of the shot, but it's still heading over the line until Bellusci scampers back to clear up.
Alex Mowatt scores #lufc pic.twitter.com/1Eiuq20Q7b
— LUFC Pictures (@LUFCPictures) February 21, 2015
BOOKING! First yellow card of the game is shown to Bellusci and it's his 10th of the season, so he'll have to serve a two-game ban, missing the upcoming games against Brighton & Hove Albion and Watford.
Leadbitter lines up the resulting free kick and it's a rubbish effort from the midfielder. It does cause problems, though, with the ball spinning high into the sky before dropping kindly for Silvestri to gobble up.
Excellent pressing by the Leeds in the last couple of minutes. Boro are trying to play their way out from the back, but they're having no luck and barely been out of their half.
Leeds almost gift Boro a goal as Bellusci lazily plays the ball straight to Vossen in the area. The Belgian tries to cut it back for his two teammates, but Bamba is there to make another key interception. What a game he's having.
SAVE! Silvestri produces the best save of the game to keep out Vossen once more after Adomah had volleyed a cutback into the six-yard box.
Leeds are all at sea at the moment as they fail to clear their lines. The visitors have had just one shot, but still they lead 1-0 on Teesside.
While Leeds have had a solitary effort at goal, make it 10 for Boro as Leadbitter drags a shot wide with his weaker left foot. The plentiful home support will wonder just how their side are losing here.
SAVE! Silvestri again to the rescue for Leeds as the Italian does brilliantly to acrobatically arch himself to tip over Kike's deflected shot, which was looping under the crossbar.
Leeds make a rare foray into the Boro box as Morison gets to the byline. He uses the outside of his boot to pull it back, but Austin and Wootton get themselves in a muddle as both try to get a shot off.
CHANCE! Where are the Leeds defenders?! Adomah is all alone at the back post, but takes a stinky first touch before getting off a bobbly shot that Leeds deal with. Moments later the hosts have a free kick that Leadbitter swings over, but it's just too strong for a trio of red shirts arriving at the back stick.
SAVE! Silvestri again with a fine save as he gets down low to his right to beat out Clayton's drive. He pushed it straight back into the danger area, but luckily for Leeds it falls to a navy shirt.
I wonder how many more times today I'll type 'luckily for Leeds'. How are they still winning this match?! Make it 13-1 to Boro on the shot count.
Wootton with an excellent back-post header to clear the danger with Silvestri completely out of position and an unguarded net for Reach to head in to.
CLOSE! Kike's first touch is so heavy that it actually has Silvestri worried. The Italian knows where his post is, though, and watches it safely wide.
Kike is inches offside, but it was the right decision from the assistant. The Spaniard missed the chance anyway as he shifted it onto his left foot and sidefooted against the base of the post.
Just the one minute of added time at the Riverside and Leeds have a corner, their first of the game. They couldn't, could they?
CHANCE! Oh my word, they should have scored. Bamba gets half a yard on Friend but can only glance a header wide from the centre of the area. Will they regret that?
HALF-TIME: BORO 0-1 LEEDS
Well, well, well. I anticipated a tight game with Boro playing their third game in six days and Leeds being one of the stingiest defences in 2015. It's been the complete opposite, though, with Boro creating chance after chance but somehow not scoring. The half-time shot count (on target) is Boro 15(7)-2(1) Leeds. Goodness gracious.
The visitors took the lead inside three minutes when Mowatt netted his sixth goal of the season with a slightly fortuitous strike that spun into the corner via a deflection off Gibson.
Since then, it's been all Boro and the home side will feel that they should be maybe two or three goals to the good. However, they could have gone two down if Bamba, who has been fantastic at the back, had found the target with his header which was the last action of the opening half.
Click here to see the Championship table as it stands right now. If Leeds can hang on for three points, they will be up to 11th ahead of today's 10 remaining games, while Boro will drop out of the top two if Bournemouth and Derby avoid defeat against Brentford and Sheffield Wednesday respectively.
It wouldn't surprise me if Redfearn made a half-time change at the back. Bellusci has been a real liability and is also the only player on the book to have been booked.
The two sides re-emerge from the tunnel and there's no changes from either manager. Redfearn might not want to mess with his backline, but Bellusci really has been dodgy.
KICKOFF! Leeds get us back underway.
SAVE! Less than a minute into the second half and Silvestri's gloves are already warm again as he springs low to his left to tip Kike's curler away. It's a really good save because he pushed it away from danger with multiple red shirts waiting to pounce on any loose ball.
OFF THE BAR! We're learning today that Boro aren't the best at defending set pieces. Leeds's second dangerous delivery again results in a chance as Wootton meets it and cracks a header against the bar. The danger isn't over and Bamba has a half-chance with his back to goal, but sends his audacious overhead effort high into the stand.
SAVE! Bellusci again with some poor defending as he allows Kike to drive at him and get a shot away that Silvestri, quite unconvincingly, turns wide.
Bamba hacks the ball out of play for a throw-in after Leeds threw their bodies in the way of several shots in the area. Surely they can't hang on for much longer?
Reach loops a header onto the roof of the net after Silvestri had parried Adomah's cross-cum-shot into the air. Boro have started the second half exactly as they would have wanted, but Leeds will take heart from how dangerous they've looked at set pieces.
Boro have plenty of firepower at their disposal on the bench with Bamford and Tomlin and it looks like the latter will be on soon.
The attendance at the Riverside is 25,531, with 2,690 Leeds fans making the 80-odd mile trip to the North-East corner of Yorkshire.
CLOSE! Leeds threaten on a couple of occasions as Morison rolls his man and is just beaten to the ball by Mejias before Mowatt has the ball cleared away just as he was about to shoot from close range.
That gives Leeds a corner, but this time it doesn't result in a chance as Mejias fingertips it over the onrushing Wootton at the back post.
BOOKING! Both Leeds centre-backs are in the book now as Bamba tugs back the advancing Kike.
BORO SUB: Tomlin replaces Reach, a move which will probably see Vossen drift out to the left.
Surely we'll see Chelsea loanee Bamford soon as well. He's been one of Boro's standout players this season and his class might be what the hosts need to finally break down Leeds.
As Boro get more and more desperate, Leeds should have the odd chance on the break and they almost have on as Cook's crossfield ball is just too strong for Austin.
A ball over the top from Boro goes to absolutely no-one and you have to wonder if the home side might just run out of steam in this final half an hour. On another day they would have four or five goals already, but it's just not gone their way so far today.
Austin with an awesome burst of pace to escape the attention of two Boro players. He then looks for the run of Morison, but Kalas is across quickly before tumbling ridiculously under the faintest of touches. The referee buys it, though, and Boro survive.
BORO SUB: Here comes Bamford, coming on for right-back Nsue. What formation is Karanka going with here, then? Three at the back, or Adomah to right-back?
It looks like the latter at the moment and I think that's a good shout as he hasn't had much joy today going forward.
SHOTS! Another two efforts from Boro, they've now passed the 20-shot mark. First, Vossen's curler towards the far corner was tipped around the post by Silvestri before left-back Friend sliced a wild effort nowhere near the goal after a neat one-two.
It opens up for Austin about 30 yards from goal and he goes for the wondergoal but slices it well wide.
TACKLE! That is one of the best tackles you'll see this season in any league as Bamba just about gets a toe to Kike's shot just as he was about to surely equalise from close range. Brilliant from the new Leeds captain.
How long before Redfearn makes a change? His side have only had 37% possession worked ever so hard without the ball. Surely some tired legs out there?
Boro's best chances have come when they've really outplayed and broken down Leeds. In the last few minutes they've been sending in hopeful balls and the Leeds backline is dealing with them excellently.
A stat to give Boro fans hope from @OptaJoe on Twitter: "16 - No side has scored more goals in the final 15 minutes of Championship games this season than Middlesbrough (16). Pressure."
Bellusci again with a careless mistake to hand Boro a chance to break. It doesn't come to much, but the hosts do have a corner, their 14th of the game.
BLOCKS! Two more big blocks from Leeds as Vossen and Leadbitter are kept out. Less than 15 minutes of normal time remaining now. Can Leeds hang on for an incredible win?
After another fantastic Bamba interception, Kike curls a harmless shot over the top. He's had plenty of efforts today, but this time he can't even test Silvestri.
BORO SUB: Forshaw replaces the hosts' top-scorer and captain Leadbitter.
BOOKING! The first thing Forshaw does is get booked as he takes out Murphy.
CLOSE! Byram exchanges passes with Morison down the Leeds left before toe-poking over a low cross that reaches Wootton at the back post. The defender doesn't get forward often and you can see why as he trips over his own feet when trying to find the net from a very tight angle.
CHANCE! Huge chance for Leeds to go two in front as Austin sidefoots straight at Mejias after a surge forward from Byram. The visitors are looking increasingly dangerous on the counter-attack.
A chance for the players to grab a drink and catch their breath as Vossen stays down with what seems to be a worrying injury. Remember, the hosts have used all three of their subs, so might have to play the remaining 10 minutes or so a man light.
Boro will have 10 men for the remainder as Vossen is stretchered off. You would still expect them to have more of the chances in the final moments, but Leeds could be even more dangerous on the counter.
After about six minutes of treatment on the pitch, Vossen is stretchered off. Let's hope it's not too serious a problem. We'll have a lengthy period of injury time.
And now Bellusci goes down with cramp. Remember, Leeds are yet to make a change.
LEEDS SUB: Bellusci comes off to be replaced by Cooper as NINE minutes of added time are indicated.
SHOT! Austin's piledriver from 25 yards is straight at Mejias, but he still has to tip it over. Leeds have a corner and a chance to whittle down the clock.
Redfearn still has two changes to make and you'd expect him to do so to waste time in the final five minutes.
BOOKING! Cooper is booked for hauling over Bamford, who has done barely anything since coming on. Very surprising.
Bamford then produces a clever reverse pass, but Kike's touch is really heavy and Cooper is able to hoof clear.
Corner to Boro as Wootton does really well to put off the onrushing Friend at the back post...
Another Boro corner. Mejias is up!
It comes to nothing and now Leeds have a throw-in deep in their own half.
FULL-TIME: BORO 0-1 LEEDS
One of the biggest steals of the season as Leeds win 1-0 at the Championship leaders to move into the top half. They were outplayed for basically the whole game but somehow held on.
Boro will wonder how they didn't win today's game by a comfortable margin, but it seems that Leeds are the bogey team for the top sides. Out of a possible 18 points agains the current top three of Boro, Bournemouth and Derby, Leeds have picked up 15 points! Some record.
Silvestri is handed the Sky Bet Man of the Match, but for me it had to be Bamba. The centre-back was simply immense, making countless headers and numerous crucial interceptions. Positionally he is excellent and surely his presence is one of the main reasons behind Leeds's recent form of five wins in six games.
Anyway, time for us to go but make sure you click around on site to find our plentiful live commentaries on a busy Saturday of football. Our feature 3pm game in the Championship will be Brentford vs. Bournemouth, with commentary starting in 10 minutes. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Written by
Pascal Lemesre
Pascal Lemesre
