da realsbet： [ad_pod ]
da fazobetai： The Championship Playoffs are some of the nerviest fixtures in all of world football, never more so than when they head to a dreaded penalty shootout.
One team more than any will be desperate to avoid penalties in the playoffs this season, and that is Leeds United.
Avoid penalties
The Whites’ poor penalty record as of late speaks for itself. Kemar Roofe, Patrick Bamford and Pablo Hernandez have all missed spot-kicks in recent weeks, and perhaps if they had converted them, Leeds would have already been promoted.
Hernandez’s penalty, in particular, has to be viewed as a turning point in the Yorkshire club’s season. The Spaniard squandered a golden opportunity to put his team 1-0 up against Wigan immediately after they were reduced to 10 men. If that had gone in perhaps they would have gone on to win that game.
All three men will be hesitant to step up again in a shootout as their most recent penalties have been misses. (However) The trio will be second-guessing themselves while taking the run up and that doesn’t bode well for their chances of converting.
Their goalkeeper also has a weak history when facing penalties. Kiko Casilla has only kept out three spot-kicks in a career that has spanned 12 years. A poor record at best.
Go all out
The Whites’ poor record when it comes to penalties means that if a game heads to extra time, Marcelo Bielsa should set his team up to attack to avoid a shootout.
Many sides play tentatively when it comes to extra time, but unless the Argentine has seen a marked improvement on penalties during training, he must go all out for a win.
The manager’s best bet is to set his side out to win in extra-time,(with an aggressive style of play that would catch the opposition off guard and would give them a real chance of winning the tie.
Leeds’ recent woes from 12 yards will undoubtedly be in the minds of every fan if the scores are level when the final whistle blows. Nerves will be running high both on the pitch and in the stands and Bielsa may live to regret not finishing the game off during extra time if he doesn’t set his team out to attack.