Despite having the chance to strengthen their push for automatic promotion this season, Leeds fell to a hugely disappointing 2-0 defeat at home to Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday afternoon.

Snapshot

Having been knocked out of the FA Cup third round against Arsenal last Monday despite a spirited performance that saw them rack up an impressive 18 shots on goal, Leeds returned to their bread and butter of the Championship on Saturday.

Marcelo Bielsa's side started off the game against Sheffield Wednesday in fine fashion, enjoying eight shots on goal in the first-half, whilst the visitors couldn't even manage one on target. But their profligacy came back to bite them, with the Owls scoring twice late on to inflict a painful defeat.

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And whilst Patrick Bamford will no doubt get his fair share of the criticism after failing to find the back of the net with his five attempts on goal, Bielsa must also accept part of the blame too. The Argentine's decision to send on Ezgjan Alioski in the 56th minute for Barry Douglas changed the course of the game, with the substitute playing a large part in why the home side shot themselves in the foot.

Off the bench

Whilst Bielsa has used Alioski at left-back numerous times this season (he has played there on 14 occasions), the Macedonian's more natural attacking instincts means he isn't always the most reliable of defenders. The 27-year-old has played 83 games at left-midfield throughout his career, whilst he's even had a stint up front.

And on Saturday, his display proved he simply isn't solid enough to play at full-back. As per Sofascore, he made no tackles or interceptions whatsoever, and was dribbled past twice when he was on the pitch. And despite only coming on as a substitute, he lost the ball on more occasions (9) than Stuart Dallas did (8) in the entire 90 minutes he was on the pitch.

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Alioski's lack of physical presence also let him down big time, winning just one of his five total duels. But it was the 27-year-old's positioning that really cost Leeds, with both of the Owls' two goals on the day coming down the left-hand side where the Macedonian really should have been protecting. Instead, he was caught out far too often, and Bielsa's gamble backfired spectacularly.

So whilst much of the post-match analysis will be centred around Leeds' wastefulness in front of goal and how they couldn't convert any of their 14 total attempts on goal, Bielsa played a major part in the Whites' self-destruction too.

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