SHEFFIELD, England (AP) — Patrick Bamford scored an 88th-minute goal off his nose to earn Leeds a 1-0 win over Sheffield United, which slipped to a third straight loss to open the Premier League season on Sunday.
Bamford met a left-wing cross by Jack Harrison with an attempted header that ended up hitting his nose and finding the bottom corner. The striker was criticized for his conversion rate last season as Leeds earned promotion, but has now scored a goal in all three of the team's games on its return to the top division.
“This one came off my nose,” Bamford said, “but I'll take it!”
Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier produced two brilliant saves, from John Lundstram and George Baldock, to keep the hosts at bay in the first half. The one off Lundstram was particularly special, Meslier flinging himself to his right to instinctively tip a powerful shot around the post.
“Every shot that he saved, their players were like, ‘Who is this guy?’ but he is a brilliant keeper,” Bamford said of Meslier, a 20-year-old Frenchman.
Sheffield United has yet to score in its first three league games so far — a first for the club in its 131-year history — and Chris Wilder's team is struggling to replicate its form from last season when it nearly qualified for Europe.
Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds has back-to-back wins, after beating Fulham last weekend.
Halftime substitute Rodrigo, an offseason signing from Valencia, failed to finish the match after being taken off himself in second-half injury time.
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