"Free Kick Turned Game"

To the naked eye, the free kick appeared to be given for a push by Angel Rangel near the touchline whilst the free kick was eventually taken from the edge of the penalty area. Leeds fans in that area believed that the initial foul was for a shirt pull on the edge of the box and the referee played an advantage – although what advantage can be gained from a player running towards touch away from goal is open for considerable debate!

From the resulting free kick, Swansea again defended poorly and Jermaine Beckford was on hand to put Leeds in front after a rearguard performance for the Swans for large periods of the first hour.

But it was the placement of that free kick that concerned Roberto “I had to see the referee after the game because the set piece was a turning point

“They try to use intimidation at Elland Road to get some decisions in their favour and this time the free-kick from Angel was right on the sideline but the referee placed the ball on the 18-yard line.

“That makes it a completely different set-piece and we have been working hard on not giving away dangerous set-pieces. We didn’t, but we still got punished and that’s very very frustrating.

“When you come to a place like this, where they have got huge momentum and everything is going for them, a turning point like that is very disappointing. I thought there was nothing in the game after the first hour and both teams were cancelling each other out.

“Probably from the outside it seems like a small thing but it means you are defending a completely different set-piece and we got punished in an area where Leeds are very strong.

“I’m not saying the referee was intimidated but when you come here, and it is a special place in League One, the whole environment can affect the way 50-50 decisions go. I’m not here to criticise the referee but I’m very disappointed about one incident.

“It’s a long, long season and when you look at the way Leeds play, they depend a lot on two players and anything can happen with injuries or suspensions,”

“Their two strikers make them tick. At the moment they are using their momentum and they don’t need to be pretty to win. The 15-point deduction is without doubt helping them because it pulls everyone together.

“They are probably the team to beat now but it’s a long season.”