Premier League result: West Ham battle past Leeds United to claim gutsy away win at Elland Road

West Ham showcased their aerial prowess in a hard-fought 2-1 win over Leeds in the Premier League on Friday night.

There was early drama when Leeds were awarded a penalty only two minutes into the game when Patrick Bamford was brought down by West Ham ‘keeper Lukasz Fabianski while trying to go round him and score.

Mateusz Klich was tasked with scoring against his Polish international teammate and very nearly wasted it when his tame initial effort was comfortably saved.

However, after a VAR check, it was deemed Fabianski was off his line and Klich promptly scored the retake, sending him the wrong way in the process.

Despite that early setback, the Hammers looked the better side through much of the fast-paced first half, creating a plethora of opportunities to score.

They made their pressure pay when Tomas Soucek rose high to head the equaliser from a Jarrod Bowen corner in the 25th minute.

Even though David Moyes’ side were less dominant in the second half, they finally took the lead in the 80th minute when a powerful header from Angelo Ogbonna met a delightful cross from Aaron Cresswell.

The win means West Ham move up to fifth in the table on 20 points, while Leeds stay put in fourteenth.

West Ham will play hosts to Crystal Palace on Wednesday night in their next fixture and Leeds will be home to Newcastle earlier that evening.

Although he is widely considered to be a football coaching pioneer and something of a tactical genius, Marcelo Bielsa has also gained a reputation for being an eccentric and unpredictable figure who has a tendency to not spend particularly long at clubs. The most extreme example of this was when he resigned as Lazio manager two days into the job in July 2016. However, tonight he was on the touchline for his 113th match as Leeds manager, equalling the amount of games he managed Athletic Bilbao for - the most games he has spent as manager of any club or country. Can he prolong his stay as Leeds manager even more?

The Argentine manager is a well-loved figure at Elland Road and was even today shortlisted for FIFA's 2020 Best Men's Coach award alongside Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp and Bayern Munich's Hans-Dieter Flick. But although they have impressed neutrals with their performances this season, they have struggled to convert them into results and defensive showings have been of particular concern, with the Yorkshire outfit having conceded seven goals from set-pieces (excluding penalties) this season including two tonight and the second-most goals overall in the league so far this season (22).

Even though Bielsa clearly values his players being adept in multiple positions, that can also cause dysfunction due to players not having the chance to familiarise themselves with a particular role or position. Stuart Dallas, for example, has this season played both full-back positions, in central midfield and on the wing too. Additionally, some fans have accused Dallas (6'0") and Ezgjan Alioski (5'7/8") of lacking the height or aerial ability to play in defence, with Dallas being out jumped by the towering Soucek this evening adding to those concerns. If Leeds continue to struggle, it would hardly be surprising if fans and the media alike also started to question whether Bielsa's inability to speak English well is preventing him from coaching to his full ability.

Angelo Ogbonna (West Ham) - The Italian centre back has been in great form and was even nominated for the Premier League's November Player of the Month award. His purple patch continued tonight. Him and Fabio Balbuena were both outstanding as a centre-back pairing despite Moyes changing from a back five to a back four due to injuries, yet they both seemed unfazed barring the odd lapse in concentration. What edges it for Ogbonna though is his fantastic header that won West Ham the game. He could have even got an assist too when his brilliant cross was headed onto the post by his centre-back partner.

Leeds: Meslier 7, Dallas 5, Alioski 5, Ayling 7, Cooper 6, Phillips 6, Klich 7, Rodrigo 6, Harrison 5, Raphinha 7, Bamford 7...Subs: Shackleton 6, Costa 5, Roberts 5

West Ham: Fabianski 7, Cresswell 7, Coufal 7, Ogbonna 8, Balbuena 7, Rice 8, Soucek 8, Fornals 7, Benrahma 7, Bowen 8, Haller 6...Subs: Noble N/A, Johnson N/A, Snodgrass N/A

2' - PENALTY TO LEEDS!!! Already?! Cooper strides forward and puts Bamford through on goal. He tries to round Fabianski but is brought down by the Polish 'keeper in the process. Fabianski will escape with a yellow card despite giving away the penalty thanks to the double jeopardy rule.

5' - THE PENALTY WILL BE RETAKEN! Fabianski is furious and tries to claim that replays show he was in fact on his line but the officials disagree and Klich will have a second go at it.

6' - GOOOOAAAALLL!!! At the second time of asking, Klich scores the penalty and opens the scoring for Leeds - this time sending Fabianski the wrong way with a low effort into the bottom right corner.

25' - GOOOOAAAALLL!!! Soucek equalises for the Hammers with his 3rd Premier League goal of the season! Bowen whips in a delightful cross and Soucek rises well above Dallas to head it goalwards. Meslier is unable to deal with it while moving across his goal in the other direction and the ball just about finds its way over the line

78' - INCREDIBLE SAVE!! Balbuena produces a bullet header from a West Ham free-kick and Meslier somehow manages to palm it away in mid-air with his left hand before Phillips clears the ball with an overhead kick. The Hammers are really going for it now!

80' - GOOOAAALLLL!!! Costa gives away a cheap free-kick, from which Cresswell duly whips in a delightful cross. Ogbonna escapes Cooper who's marking him and powers a header into the back of the net to make it 2-1 to West Ham!

88' - OFF THE POST!!! It's genuinely a miracle that West Ham aren't much further in the lead. Surprisingly though, it's their two centre-backs that link up for this opportunity, with Ogbonna crossing to Balbuena from the right, who agonisingly heads the ball against the post.