Don’t Blame it on the Football - Blame it on the Spy

Is sending a spy to a training session really such a crime? Does Frank Lampard really think that such a thing is so terrible - the man who swears by his ex manager who once hid in a laundry basket to evade a touchline ban?

It’s a very convenient distraction, or excuse, to draw eyes away from the real issue of the night. His Derby County side were taken to pieces by a brilliant Leeds United performance.

Leeds, as expected, pressed from the word go. Lampard’s men barely made a foray into the United half, not managing a single notable effort on goal. Meanwhile, Bielsa’s swarms overwhelmed Derby as they stormed into a thoroughly deserved first half lead.

The gap in experience between the two managers was clear. Leeds were a team managed with an identity. They had a purpose, a drive towards an ideal playing style.

County were the opposite. They seemed more like a bunch of talented, yes, but entirely un cohesive individuals. The likes of Mason Mount and Florian Jozefzoon showed flurries of their ability, but that was pretty much it in terms of Derby troubling the home side’s defence.

The gap between the two teams was cavernous, and it was clearly not one caused by the petty issue of a training ground spy. Leeds stuck to their high octane principles that have guided them all season and Derby simply could not keep up.

The visitors - until they went 2-0 down - seemed content to sit off United in a 4-5-1 block and hope that their rigid structure would frustrate Leeds. It did a little, but not to any great extent. The Whites’ wingers hugged the touchlines to sufficiently stretch the Rams’ solid shape. Indeed, both goals came from attacks out wide.

And they both came from the right, where the excellent Jack Clarke put in a show stopping performance. The promising young winger has already received plaudits this season, but tonight he was truly something else.

He provided a first half assist with a near post cross for Kemar Roofe before bringing about the second goal just after half time with a wicked cross that had keeper Scott Carson in a twisted, flapping mess. It would be unfair to lay any blame at Carson’s feet - it was truly a horrific ball to deal with.

Any talk of the spy does, really, detract from the actual reason that Derby lost. They were simply not good enough. All the spy issue does is detract from the painstaking truth of this matter. It should not be a leaning post for Lampard to excuse the defeat, or some irritating talking point pundits use to give themselves something worthwhile to say about the match itself.

Leeds dominated Derby, who barley had a sniff all game. This was not a victory by spying, or any kind of dirty tactic. This was simply one football team playing better than another football team.