Jesse Marsch thinks Leeds United may be in with a shout when he hears signs of progress Yorkshire News

Although the Whites were unable to turn consecutive victories into three wins in a row despite taking the lead through Jack Harrison, new manager Marsch tries to focus on the big picture and was pleased with what he saw from his side in a game that at times it was extremely frantic.

Harrison’s goal was nullified by a second-half free kick from James Ward-Prowse and despite several chances Leeds were unable to find a winner. His coach, however, was pleased with the performance.

“There was a clarity of how we want the game to look tactically, we were balanced, we didn’t give much away,” he reflected. “We’re trying to turn leads into real chances, real chances into goals.

“I’m not worried about that, we have quality, with this style we will always be able to create chances. If we could slow down and make the last pass a little cleaner or sharper, we would have more goals.” I’ll keep working on it, but it’s a step in the right direction.

“We try to organize ourselves to defend better in all phases, including set pieces. The boys are intelligent, they adapt well.

“We had a little bit more time with 75 per cent of the group (during the international break) to tactically work out how we want the games to go.

“I yelled at the players less this game because they were more in control of every situation.”

Both coaches, who know each other well from working in Red Bull’s global network – Ralph Hasenhuttl from Southampton for Leipzig, Marsch for the German team, Salzburg and New York – said the game had gone as expected and their team should have won, although the Leeds manager later backtracked to admit that a draw was a fair result.

“It was an intense match, with many second balls and duels, which we should have won,” he said. “We knew it would be like this: intense, tight, important to try, in tight moments, to find advanced solutions to go into moments of transition and put pressure on opponents.”

“Every time Southampton come into your half, they start throwing balls into the box. (Ward-) Prowse has an amazing serve, he feels the pressure. We resist those moments well.

“(Luke Ayling’s) foul leads to what I call a penalty – Prowse is so effective on direct kicks. We knew it would be important not to reveal fouls. He put her right in the corner like we were worried he might. “

His Austrian counterpart reflected: “I think it was the expected match. I spoke before the match that it would be like ping pong, two teams that like to play fast.

“We tried to avoid playing in our own half, we knew the pressure would be intense, we wouldn’t have much time (with the ball).

“Their behavior is similar to ours. We had more chances, the best ones, we had been closer to winning this game. We take the point, it’s a good step forward in an intense environment and game. Going with a point is good.”

Joe Gelhardt hit off the bench, as did Kalvin Phillips because Liam Cooper started. Marsch had said beforehand that both senior players could start but they were unlikely to finish the game, so it was likely only one would. Cooper played the full 90 minutes, but only due to a Leeds bench error that saw Ayling serve in place of him.

Cooper was selected ahead of Pascal Struijk, Ayling’s replacement from the bench.

Marsch explained that the reduced roles of Gelhardt and Struijk were the side effects of a Covid-19 outbreak at Thorp Arch during the international hiatus.

“Pascal was positive at the break and coming back from Covid he had a small hamstring injury so he didn’t train fully,” he explained. “Cooper had done it. He looked strong and good and clear, it was a relatively easy decision to make under the circumstances.”

“I was worried if Coops could make it to 90 minutes. Given the way it went, it was good that he was able to play a full game.”

“There was a mix-up with the staff. Luke had a little bit of a situation where he had to go out for a second. Liam was feeling heavy, we wanted to get him out of the game and put Pascal in the center of defense. Clearly the communication wasn’t right. what it needed to be.

“One of the reasons Joffy (Gelhardt) didn’t start was because he tested positive at one point in the week, a false positive, but missed a day and a half of training. It was a bit of a strange situation.

“We haven’t been able to get it going, with pace in training. He is playing more of a backup role.

“He gave us a boost (when he came in) – he’s clear in the role, dangerous at times. I’m considering expanding his role more and more within the team.”

“The plan is to play it with the U-23s on Monday, get more minutes out of the game and…