Ending our US pre-season tour with a 4-2 defeat to Leeds United in Chicago felt like a classic game of two halves.
While the final result looks disappointing on paper, the first 45 minutes gave us plenty of reasons to feel optimistic about the upcoming season.
During the first half, Andoni Iraola had the team playing some delightful football. Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz both returned to the side and looked sharp straight away.
The opening goal arrived in the 7th minute when Luke Chambers finished smartly from a corner.
The second was a gorgeous team effort. Trey Nyoni clipped a lovely pass to Jeremie Frimpong, who set up Wirtz for a clinical finish.
Nyoni and Rio Ngumoha were outstanding before the break, displaying real composure and creative flair. At 2-0 up, everything seemed under control.
However, the second half exposed a few familiar defensive headaches.
A series of planned substitutions disrupted our rhythm completely. An error from Milos Kerkez handed Brenden Aaronson an easy way back into the match, and Leeds grew in confidence from that moment on, with former Liverpool winger Harry Wilson causing problems on the right.
Our vulnerability from set-pieces proved particularly frustrating. Leeds pushed us back, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin scoring twice from long throw routines and Sean Longstaff adding another.
Defending long throws and second balls remains an area where the backline must improve before the serious action begins.
It’s never enjoyable to lose, especially after taking such a comfortable lead. Yet pre-season is all about building fitness and sharpening tactics.
The first-half display showed how fluid and exciting this side can be once everyone is fully integrated. Let’s hope we see more of that in the weeks ahead.
