Pundit Michael Owen believes that Leeds United were unlucky to see Jack Harrison’s own goal stand against Brighton as he thinks the winger was fouled as he went to clear the ball.
Leeds might have slipped down into 19th in the table due to other results not going their way, but they came out of a clash with Brighton knowing that it could be a very valuable point on the board.
A 2-2 draw saw Leeds fight back from a goal down twice to earn a share of the points as fine goals from Patrick Bamford and Jack Harrison brought the Whites level in either half.
How did the game play out?
Leeds will know they were perhaps fortunate to come away from the game with a draw, given Brighton’s dominance in possession and threat when they broke forward in numbers.
Their goals came through Alexis Mac Allister and then an own goal from Harrison when a scramble in the box almost saw a Max Wöber own goal, before Illan Meslier’s save diverted the ball into the path of Harrison and Solly March.
The Brighton winger forced Harrison into bundling the ball into his own goal to restore the Seagulls’ advantage, before the Leeds man made amends with an outstanding equaliser.
Should Brighton’s second have counted?
It was a bizarre goal for Leeds to have conceded, with Harrison seemingly kicking the ball straight into the goal, rather than hooking in the other direction, either with his right foot, or just with better control on his left.
Michael Owen, though, thinks Harrison is unlucky not to have won a foul for this challenge as he sees a clip on the foot of the Leeds man from March, forcing him into smashing into his own goal.
He said this on Premier League Productions:
“This is a foul. Not many will agree with me.
“He is about to clear, gets his foot clipped, then he ends up spooning into his own net. There is no way on earth he can kick that into his own net without being fouled.”
Do Leeds need a striker in the summer?
Yes
No
It would have been so harsh on Brighton if that was chalked off for a foul, given that it is not clear at all that he makes contact with Harrison’s foot.
You could argue that Harrison could be less honest and go down to buy a cheap foul, just as virtually every other team in the league do, and Brighton loved doing.
However, we can’t blame Paul Tierney for much in that game as it’s one of the matches where the on-field official has actually done a solid job.
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