Roy Keane slams ‘sloppy’ Leeds after they let in FOUR goals in 37 minutes against Manchester United 

Roy Keane slammed ‘stupid’ Leeds after Manchester Untied exploited their expansive and open playing style to score four times in an embarrassing first half for Marcelo Bielsa’s men.

Scott McTominay netted an unlikely brace in the first three minutes for the hosts at Old Trafford, with Bruno Fernandes and Victor Lindelof also getting on the scoresheet.

Manchester United were four goals up after just 37 minutes, and, although Liam Cooper reduced the deficit for Leeds before half time, Keane described their performance in the first half as ‘naive’. 

Roy Keane was heavily critical of Leeds after their disappointing first half at Old Trafford

Keane described Leeds as ‘naive’ after they conceded four goals in the first 37 minutes

Keane was eager to point out that Leeds continued to pose a threat going forward, but stressed that they were always likely to be vulnerable due to their ‘stupidity’.  

Speaking on Sky Sports, Keane said: ‘To be fair to Leeds, they’ve got a lot of courage, a lot of stupidity as well, but they’ve been getting chances.

‘Naive. They deserved that goal and they’ve certainly kept going, and we know what this team is about – for all their weaknesses, they have a lot of strength, a lot of spirit, they keep going. They deserved that goal, and they’ll keep going but it could still get worse for them in the second half.’

Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa appears unwavering in terms of his tactical approach to the game

Commenting on McTominay’s opening goal, which was scored after just 69 seconds, Keane described Leeds’ defending as ‘sloppy’.

Keane said: ‘They were quick out of the blocks. Sloppy play from Leeds. Lovely, sweet strike from McTominay. No Leeds players around him, but he still had to finish it.’

Former Leeds player Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink also criticised Leeds.

He said: ‘When you have that many turnovers they get punished. They’re playing against good players. You can’t give the ball away when you’re that open.’

Leeds manager Bielsa appears unwavering in his principles with regards to Leeds having an attack-minded approach, which often leaves them vulnerable defensively. 

Although Leeds are susceptible to conceding goals on a regular basis, they are capable of causing frequent problems for opponents in an attacking sense. 

However, against Manchester United they afforded their opponents far too much space, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side taking full advantage. 

There was further misery for Leeds in the second half, with Dan James scoring before Fernandes made it 6-1 with a penalty as he got his second goal of the game. Stuart Dallas, however, managed to get a goal back for Leeds.