Kalvin Phillips reacts to Leeds draw with Brentford, mentions Kiko Casilla error

Add as preferred source on Google

Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips felt that his side were dominant on the trip to Brentford on Tuesday night in the Championship and assessed a strong performance in the 1-1 draw.

The Whites bounced back from their defeat to Nottingham Forest by drawing away to Brentford in midweek.

Marcelo Bielsa’s team put in a much improved display to earn a point that keeps them second in the league table, while opponents Brentford are now fourth.

But the Yorkshire giants will be leapfrogged by Fulham if they manage to win away at Millwall on Wednesday night.

Leeds gifted Brentford the opening goal when goalkeeper Kiko Casilla failed to control a simple back-pass and that allowed Said Benrahma to pounce to tap into an empty net.

But captain Liam Cooper did equalise in the first-half from a corner and earned a much deserved point in a game they dominated possession.

Phillips, 24, was back in the Leeds XI following his suspension and he was a real standout in the centre of the park with his encouraging display.

The English midfielder praised the team for their overall display, while explaining that goalkeeper Casilla apologised to his teammates after his blunder.

“Obviously very gutted for Kiko but it’s a mistake that he can’t really make. He knows that, we’ve told him and he’s apologised for that. That’s football and it happens,” Phillips told LUTV.

“We were on top at the start and all throughout the game we were on top so very proud of the lads for putting in a good performance.”

TBR’s View:

Phillips looked like he had never been away with a colossal display in midfield against Brentford and he’s going to be pivotal from now until the end of the season.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the Leeds spectrum they have a player in Casilla that cost his side two points away to Brentford and it was another individual error to add to his collection.

The 33-year-old Spaniard will get more attention for mistakes in goal and unfortunately it’s gone too far now, as he’s costing his team in their promotion bid.

Manager Bielsa is stubbornly loyal to players in his team, but Casilla can’t hide from his latest mistakes and surely teammate Illan Meslier has to wonder what he has to do to get a chance.