🔗 Share this article Man City Accused of Gamesmanship in Narrow Victory Against Leeds United - Daniel Farke Leeds manager Daniel Farke believed Man City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma simulated an knock in the second half of their top-flight encounter Leeds United head coach Daniel Farke claimed Manchester City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma of feigning injury to "bend the rules" in their top-flight match at Etihad Stadium The visitors got off to the poorest start with Phil Foden finding the net inside the opening 60 seconds, before Josko Gvardiol doubled the home side's advantage ahead of the interval Second-Half Revival Denied Nevertheless, Leeds rallied after the break following a adjustment of tactics and formation, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin netting straight away after the resumption Furthermore with Manchester City clearly having difficulty to cope with the changes moments before Lukas Nmecha equalized, City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma collapsed to receive attention, allowing manager Pep Guardiola to summon his players to the touchline and deliver fresh instructions in the two minutes play was stopped for "Everyone understands why he collapsed," Farke stated "This isn't the elephant in the room. Why he fell it was clear. It is within the bounds of the rules. It is clever. If I approve? If it's within the sense of fair play? If it ought to be like this I will reserve to myself. It is up to the authorities to find a resolution" Manager's Frustration "I questioned the assistant referee at this moment if you want to do something. Our options are limited" "Unless we educate our footballers in the game what to do in terms of fair play and fair play and everything and if we simply attempt to exploit regulations and even do a fake injury in an attempt to do an additional team talk, it is not what I approve of personally. But if it is within the rules I have no grounds for complaint" Late Winner Foden's injury-time winner condemned Leeds to a sixth defeat in seven Premier League matches to leave them eighteenth in the division, with only bottom club Wolves having scored fewer top-flight goals this season Tactical Adjustments However, Daniel Farke, who has been questioned for a absence of boldness particularly around changes, was nearly vindicated for a bold choice at the half-time that almost turned around their situation Talking to television pundits, Phil Foden, stated that his side were only able to regroup after Pep Guardiola's touchline meeting with his players "During the break we were in command. Second half they came out, pressed us a lot higher, they deployed two in attack and changed the formation a little bit," said Phil Foden "We genuinely had difficulty to gain control of the game. We assembled on the side of the field and changed a couple of aspects and it got better from there. That little break was vital to get things right" Positive Aspects for Leeds The last time Leeds United suffered four consecutive Premier League matches was in 2022-23, when their season concluded with demotion Nevertheless, while Daniel Farke stated that "their overriding emotion is disappointment", their second period display provided sufficient evidence to suggest they are capable of arresting their current run and moving up the standings "To show such a performance should provide us plenty of confidence. If we show such determination and togetherness we have a excellent chance to win the points," Farke continued "We had the belief prior to the match, throughout the game and following the game. Otherwise you cannot respond with a performance like that. We have great togetherness and determination in the dressing room" Expert Analysis Commenting on radio analysis, former Scottish club forward Chris Sutton remarked: "Everybody anticipated it to be a straightforward victory for Manchester City, but it has been anything but easy in this second period" "Leeds can derive a lot from this performance with the way they have played in this second period" "Then came Daniel Farke's changes, who is often questioned for not being as responsive as he should be. Dominic Calvert-Lewin was introduced and roughed up the Manchester City defenders" "It looked like it might be a massive pivotal moment in Leeds' season, but Manchester City found a bit of quality. They got away with one this afternoon"