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Leeds United manager Daniel Farke claimed Manchester City keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma of simulating a knock to "bend the rules" in their top-flight match at the Etihad

The visitors made the worst possible start with Phil Foden scoring inside the opening 60 seconds, before Josko Gvardiol doubled the home side's advantage ahead of the interval

Second Period Revival Denied

Nevertheless, the visitors fought back after the break following a change of tactics and setup, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin netting straight away following the resumption

Furthermore with City clearly struggling to cope with the changes moments before Lukas Nmecha levelled, City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma went down to get treatment, allowing boss Pep Guardiola to summon his team to the sideline and issue new instructions during the two minutes play was stopped for

"Everyone knows why he collapsed," Farke stated

"It is not the elephant in the room. Why he went down it was obvious. It is within the bounds of the rules. It is clever. If I like it? If it's within the sense of sportsmanship? If it ought to be like this I will keep to myself. It is for the governing bodies to determine a resolution"

Coach's Disappointment

"I questioned the assistant referee at this moment if you wish to take action. Our hands are tied"

"If we don't teach our footballers in the game what to do in terms of sportsmanship and sportsmanship and everything and if we simply try to exploit regulations and even do a simulated knock in an attempt to do an additional team meeting, it is not what I approve of personally. But if it is allowed by the rules I can't complain"

Stoppage-Time Deciding Goal

Phil Foden's injury-time winner condemned Leeds to a sixth consecutive defeat in seven Premier League matches to leave them eighteenth in the division, with only bottom club Wolves having notched fewer Premier League goals this season

Tactical Changes

Nonetheless, Farke, who has been questioned for a absence of boldness especially around substitutions, was almost rewarded for a courageous choice at the interval that nearly turned around their situation

Talking to television pundits, Foden, stated that his side were only capable to reorganize following Pep Guardiola's sideline conference with his players

"During the break we were in command. Second half they emerged, pressed us a lot higher, they deployed a pair in attack and changed the formation a bit," said Phil Foden

"We really had difficulty to gain control of the game. We got together on the edge of the field and changed a couple of aspects and it improved from there. That brief pause was crucial to make corrections"

Positive Aspects for Leeds

The most recent time Leeds United lost four consecutive top-flight games was in the 2022-23 season, when their season ended with demotion

However, while Farke stated that "our main emotion is frustration", their second period performance offered sufficient evidence to indicate they are able of halting their current run and climbing up the standings

"To show such a performance should give us lots of confidence. If we demonstrate such determination and unity we have a excellent opportunity to win the results," the manager added

"We had the belief before the game, during the game and following the encounter. Or else you can't come back with a showing like that. We have great togetherness and fighting spirit in the locker room"

Expert Analysis

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, ex- Scottish club forward Chris Sutton remarked: "Everybody expected it to be a comfortable victory for City, but it has been anything but easy in this second half"

"Leeds can take a lot from this display with the manner they have performed in this second period"

"Following that were Daniel Farke's changes, who is frequently criticised for not being as proactive as he should be. Dominic Calvert-Lewin was introduced and roughed up the Manchester City defenders"

"It looked like it could be a massive pivotal moment in Leeds United's season, but Manchester City discovered a measure of brilliance. They got away with one this afternoon"