Leeds were made to rue Patrick Bamford‘s dreadful penalty as they slumped to defeat at Stoke thanks to Pascal Struijk’s own goal.
A tepid affair finally came to life late on when substitute Bamford won a spot-kick after Stoke captain Ben Pearson brought him down from behind.
He insisted on taking the kick himself but couldn’t capitalise, side-footing poorly over the bar.
Stoke made Leeds pay nine minutes from time when Wesley connected with Ki-Jana Hoever’s corner in a packed six-yard box. The ball stuck the crossbar before bouncing down and defecting in off the shoulder of Struijk, who couldn’t do a great deal about it.
The result leaves a meaty gap between top two Leicester and Ipswich and the chasing pack, including Leeds, even at this relatively early stage.
Stoke City celebrated a late show to take victory against high-flying Leeds on Wednesday
Leeds’ Pascal Struijk deflected a header from Wesley into the net to hand Stoke a 1-0 win
It was delight for Stoke City boss Alex Neil, landing an impressive three points to rise to 17th
Stoke had been eager to show off their new stadium lights system pre-match with 10 minutes of choreographed flashbulbs and booming Ibiza dance music.
It didn’t inspire the greatest of matches but it certainly came into its own at full-time as the Bet365 Stadium crowd celebrated a second win in five days after seeing off Sunderland on Saturday.
‘Patrick is disappointed – he could be the hero right now – but this is football and he is experienced. I don’t have to give him a hug,’ said Leeds manager Daniel Farke.
‘This is the Championship, this league is relentless. We create an unbelievable amount of chances but we have to be more brutal in taking them.
‘The stadium was buzzing after we missed the penalty and they created a couple of set-pieces out of that. But I can’t accuse me lads too much, we just have to put the ball over the line.’
Stoke boss Alex Neil said: ‘It was more than a battling performance. We got a let-off with the penalty, then we went up the other end.
‘The fans blew the roof off with the penalty and you could see the lads get a bit of energy. That’s two really strong opponents we have played and we’ve got six points.’
Coming into the game in 20th, Stoke belied their lowly position by taking the game to Leeds from the outset.
Inside the first minute, Andre Vidigal struck without conviction at Leeds keeper Ilian Meslier after Hoever’s cross from the right wasn’t cut out.
The same combination almost caught Leeds out a few minutes later with Hoever doing well to keep the ball from going into touch before crossing for Vidigal to head straight at Meslier again.
The Leeds stopper was certainly being kept busy and he blocked crosses by Ryan Mmaee and then Jordan Thompson from almost identical positions on the left, before Mmaee ultimately fired over.
Farke had reshuffled his forward line with Jaidon Anthony and Wilfried Gnonto coming in for Dan James and Crysencio Summerville – and Leeds struggled to flow going forward.
They didn’t get a sniff of the Stoke goal until the 22nd minute when Sam Byram met Anthony’s free-kick from the right but headed too high.
Things could have been different had Patrick Bamford not fluffed his penalty in the second half
But there was a clear reminder of their attacking threat when Georginio Rutter split the Stoke back line to set Joel Piroe clear inside the box. The Dutch forward’s shot was low and firm but not good enough to beat keeper Mark Travers.
That was about all Leeds could muster before half-time, with the Bet365 Stadium crowd howling for a penalty when Mehdi Leris turned Byram inside the box and went down. Referee Paul Tierney was emphatic in waving away Stoke appeals.
In stoppage time, Pascal Struijk had to hack the ball to safety after Archie Gray, not looking comfortable at right-back, tried to shield a Stoke pass out of danger only for it to squirm beyond Meslier.
Leeds continued to look sluggish at the start of the second-half. Byram allowed a through pass to get beyond him and Joe Rodon had to clear Daniel Johnson’s cross.
The visitors did spark into life when Piroe slipped Rutter into a shooting position only for his effort to lack the necessary power. Moments later, Rutter was in behind Stoke’s defence again, this time firing wide.
Farke turned to his bench and threw on Bamford, Summerville and James with 20 minutes left with Summerville quickly curling a shot wide.
Bamford was soon lining up his spot-kick but sent the ball into the Leeds fans behind the goal.
When Stoke won a corner five minutes later, having created little in the second-half, they took full advantage.
Daniel Farke’s side failed to close the gap on runaway top two Leicester City and Ipswich Town
