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Championship | Gameweek 25
Dec 29, 2019 at 3pm UK
 
Leeds logo

4-5

Bellingham (27'), Jutkiewicz (61', 91'), Bela (83')
FT(HT: 1-2)
Costa (15'), Harrison (21'), Ayling (69'), Dallas (84'), Harding (94' og.)

Leeds beat Birmingham in nine-goal thriller to go top of Championship

Wes Harding fired into his own net in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

Leeds United returned to the top of the Sky Bet Championship and ended their mini-slump with a remarkable 5-4 win against Birmingham City at St Andrew's.

Goals from Helder Costa after 15 minutes and Jack Harrison on 21 appeared to put Leeds in control to end their three-match winless run.

But Jude Bellingham reduced the arrears six minutes later before Lukas Jutkiewicz levelled in the 61st minute.

Luke Ayling restored Leeds's advantage after 69 minutes and set up Stuart Dallas for their fourth goal six minutes from time, sandwiching Jeremie Bela's 83rd-minute header.

Jutkiewicz equalised again in the first minute of time added on, only for Wes Harding's own goal to make it 5-4 four minutes later.

Leeds were without 10-goal top scorer Patrick Bamford after the striker suffered a dead leg in the 1-1 draw against Preston North End on Boxing Day.

In his place, on-loan Arsenal forward Eddie Nketiah made his first Championship start.

Marcelo Bielsa's side took the lead when they broke on a Birmingham corner.

Harrison collected a loose ball after Liam Cooper nodded away Gary Gardner's header and surged upfield before threading Costa through to turn Maxime Colin and bury a low, left-foot shot to Connal Trueman's left into the bottom corner.

Six minutes after his sixth assist of the campaign, Harrison made it 2-0 with his fifth goal of the season.

A cross from the right hit Harlee Dean and Ezgjan Alioski, with his back to goal, teed up Harrison for a half volley that took a hefty deflection off Dean to wrongfoot Trueman.

Birmingham gave themselves a lifeline when 16-year-old Bellingham fired home from 15 yards from Colin's cross.

Jutkiewicz had a half chance for an equaliser just before half-time when he seized on a loose ball after Dan Crowley had two shots blocked, but the ball wouldn't come down quick enough and he hooked over the bar.

There was still time for Ayling to steer the ball over at the other end from Kalvin Phillips' corner.

Birmingham equalised with the first meaningful chance of the second half.

Colin's corner was nodded goalwards by Kerim Mrabti at the far post and goalkeeper Kiko Casilla parried as far as Jutkiewicz, who nodded home his seventh goal of the season.

Leeds regained the lead when Ayling cut in from the right and lashed an unstoppable swerving shot into the top corner from the edge of the box.

Birmingham pegged them back again when Bela glanced in Pedersen's free-kick, only for the unmarked Dallas to hook home from Ayling's pass.

Jutkiewicz sent the home fans delirious when he stabbed home Bela's cross from close range to make it 4-4.

But Harding continued the drama when he fired into his own net while under pressure from Ayling's cross.

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Liam Cooper in action for Leeds United on August 10, 2019
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd1610422191232
2Sunderland1594225111431
3Burnley168621961330
4Leeds UnitedLeeds158522491529
5Middlesbrough1683529191027
6West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom166821811726
7Watford168262524126
8Millwall156541813523
9Blackburn RoversBlackburn156451917222
10Bristol City165742020022
11Derby CountyDerby165562020020
12Stoke CityStoke165561920-120
13Norwich CityNorwich164752524119
14Swansea CitySwansea155461110119
15Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds165471826-819
16Luton TownLuton165381826-818
17Coventry CityCoventry164572223-117
18Oxford UnitedOxford Utd164571924-517
19Plymouth ArgylePlymouth164571728-1117
20Preston North EndPreston163761624-816
21Cardiff CityCardiff164481524-916
22Hull City163671621-515
23Portsmouth152671628-1212
24Queens Park RangersQPR161871326-1311


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