Well, that was dramatic. And much needed.
In the end we took something out of nothing on Saturday against Wolves and you can only hope that gives us some confidence to take forward now.
I have to say I was delighted to see Joe Geldhardt get a bigger opportunity and he repaid Marcelo by being the pivotal figure in us getting the point.
Not only did he win the penalty, but he gave us something we have been lacking and looked a real threat for us. He was lively and confident and, having banged the drum for his inclusion for a few weeks now, I was really impressed with what I saw and the promise of what he offers us.
I’d made no secret about the fact I would have started him in front of Rodrigo at the weekend and I don’t think anyone would argue that he caused Wolves more problems in the half-an-hour he was on the pitch than anyone else in the Leeds team.
Geldhardt gave us something we have been crying out for. Up to him coming on, we were heading for defeat and, again, worryingly, we didn’t appear to have to an answer to it. We aren’t creating the opportunities we did, we gave away bad goal, and even with Raphinha back, we lacked a spark. You could say the point papered over the cracks, but it also showed there is a good spirit there.
And I know I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again, without Kalvin Phillips we don’t have a player who can get us going from deep and pick out the killer passes. Why Kalvin was on the bench and not in the starting line-up is something only Marcelo can answer. My guess is he will probably make his comeback at Arsenal tomorrow now, but you never know.
Aside from the Geldhardt influence on Saturday, the other massive factor for Leeds was the support. Elland Road did its job unbelievably well and the fans played a huge part in us driving forward in the closing stages.
I’ve been lucky enough to experience that on the pitch and there are times when that noise and backing transfers itself and you suddenly feel like you have a force behind you. It also intimidates and unsettles the away players because they don’t know what’s hit them and I think that was the case on Saturday.
Now, we go to Norwich next weekend for a great opportunity to get a second win and put some breathing space between us and those teams just below us who are still scrambling around.